Bound To You
by MeganBellaRoseBlack
Summary: Sick of being nagged by her mother to get a job, Piper Chapman moves to LA to start a new life for herself. After stumbling upon Litchfield, a slinky burlesque lounge, her life completely changes when she meets the imposing and impressive owner, Alex Vause, and her beautiful team of dancers. AU based upon the Cher film, Burlesque.
1. Moving to a Town

_So I know that I have Between the Lines of Love and Hate going at the moment, but I wanted to get this one written! _

_It's based on the film Burlesque but hopefully those of you who haven't seen the film will also enjoy it! _

_**Edit: I've already gone through and edited this chapter to improve it so I was satisfied with it. Sorry to all those who read the awful first version!**_

-x-

As Piper Chapman sat on the bus to Los Angeles, she could feel her stomach churning. Every second she sat staring out the window as the city passed her by was another second closer to a new life. She didn't know what it held, or if it would be any good, but Piper could no longer sit at home and hear her mother pester her about work and relationships and "you should be doing _something, _Piper". At Smith, Piper had been free to do what she wanted to do, go and come as she pleased and there was no one nagging her about getting a boyfriend and a job. But as soon as she had returned to her family home with her degree, it was as though her freedom had been ripped out from under her and she was a teenager again.

After five months of having her mother constantly on her case, Piper had packed her bags and caught the first bus to LA. With the small amount of her savings she had, she fully intended to find herself a small place and spend every second of the day looking for a job. The determination she possessed would surely ensure that she found something semi-decent, at least. Piper was a hard worker and was willing to work her way up from the bottom. If she needed to fetch coffee for a while in order to make something of herself, she'd freaking well do it.

As soon as she stepped foot off the bus, she opened google maps on her iphone, typed in her new address and followed the directions that she could never freaking understand. With the small amount of money that she had, she knew the place she had found for herself would be far from spacious, but she hadn't banked on the box sized room she ended up in. With barely enough room to swing a cat in, as the clique goes, it wasn't exactly the cosy little apartment she had imagined. But needs must and at the end of the day, this is what she had. She would just have to add it to the growing list of things that she would need to make work in her favour.

Dumping her bag down, Piper let out an exhausted sigh. The apartment block was a tall one and she'd had to climb the stairs after finding the elevator out but as she wandered over to her window, she realised that the view was worth it. Although far from the best, it allowed her to see out far enough to put a smile on her face and give her the oomph that she needed to begin her job hunt. This was it. This was the beginning.

But the beginning of something good wasn't going to come knocking on her door and asking if she wanted a job. Piper would have to get out there and let people know she was here, ready to work. Someone would want her.

They had to.

-x-

They didn't.

The stack of résumés she had started the day with had dwindled a significant amount but she was feeling pretty damn negative about her prospects. She'd looked up every single publishing house and potential work place in the area and every one of them had given her that patronising smile, the sympathetic nod and the insincere "I'll see what we can do". Piper was sure that none of them would call her back and the pain in her feet was for a big fat nothing.

Good god, she needed a drink. The thought of sipping on cold alcohol was far too tempting and she soon began her search for a welcoming looking bar. After the horrific and discouraging day that she had had, she was pretty sure that she'd earned it. In terms of bars, she wasn't short of options, the street she was on was crammed with places where she could grab a drink, but none of them really called out to her. So instead of walking into the first place her eyes found, Piper decided to walk on and find somewhere she could really enjoy the drink that was calling her name oh so freaking loudly. As the light began to fade, more and more clubs and bars opened there doors, their neon signs cheerfully flashing 'open' but it was one particular place that eventually caught Piper's attention. As she turned a corner, the entrance to what looked like an underground club made her turn her head. It didn't have any of the tacky flashing signs like all the other bars she had passed her hanging outside. Instead, a series of metal bars came together in an arch over the door with one name made out of lightbulbs like you would find on a Hollywood mirror.

"Litchfield".

Piper raised an eyebrow. If she was going to go into any of the places along the strip, it may as well be this one. At least it looked unique. It would have to do.

As she made her way down the steps, she eyed up the décor. There seemed to be a very dark theme, reminding Piper of the clubs she always saw in smokey, old Hollywood films. The colour palette was clearly all black and deep reds with the occasional flash or burnt orange, embellished with empty photo frames of intricate black metal work. It was all very atmospheric. She half expected someone in a bowler hat smoking a cigar to greet her.

The man that did actually meet her at the bottom of the stairs didn't have a hat but he did have his eyes lined heavily with black kohl. Leant against an archway in a very debonair kind of fashion that Piper was certain he must have practiced, he gave her a small smirk of a smile.

"Welcome" he purred, his head tipped forward and a shadow falling over his face. "Ticket for one?" Piper nodded. The smirk grew a little bigger and he held out one hand, wiggling his fingers slowly and, with the other, pointed to a sign to his left with the words "$20 per person. Enjoy your evening" emblazoned on it. Piper's eyes widened.

"$£20? I only wanted a drink" she protested. The man raised an eyebrow and cocked his head to the side.

"I can guarantee it will be money well spent". The guy was so suave and slick that Piper almost wanted to smack the smirk right off of his face, but there was also an element of charm about him that stopped her, as she was sure it did with many people. Frowning, she tried to look past him quickly and into the club but her line of sight was stopped by a heavy velvet curtain.

"I'll have to hurry you I'm afraid," he drawled "the show is about to start". He wriggled his fingers slowly once more and Piper pressed a 20 into his hand with a sigh, earning her a wide grin. "Enjoy" he told her, gripping the edge of the curtain and pulling it back slowly.

"Thanks" Piper mumbled, ducking under the curtain and into the bar which was decorated in very much the same way as the stairs had been. The only difference now was the flash of lights that swept across the floor where tables were set up, all focused towards a stage. Each table was already full and Piper vaguely wandered what it was that the audience, what _she_, was waiting to watch. Making her way over to an empty seat at the bar that lined the back wall and curled around the side of the room, Piper perched herself on the edge of a velvet cushioned barstool and waited for the tender to come over.

"What can I get you?" he asked. Piper looked the man over quickly and saw the same kind of old school clothes as she had seen on the man on the door. Everything here seemed to be bespoke for each of the members of staff. Fancy.

"Oh, erm. Double vodka soda lime" Piper smiled at the man who, incidentally, _was_ wearing a bowler hat. He tipped it to her slightly in acknowledgment and began to make her drink.

"So, what is this place?" Piper asked him as he poured out the generous shots of vodka.

"What do you mean 'what is this place?'" he laughed, not unkindly.

"Like, is this some kind of club or bar or cabaret or what?" The guy handed her the drink and took the money she offered.

"It's a burlesque lounge" he said simply. Piper nodded. She'd always kind of wanted to visit a burlesque lounge but had never had the balls to. She guessed there was no better way to start anew than to do something she never would have done at home. Settling onto the stool a little more, she sipped her drink slowly as the guy who had served her sorted out her change.

"You're new around here, aren't you" he stated. Piper wasn't sure how to answer. Did she really look that green? She'd hoped she looked like she knew what she was doing, that she had that air about her that people who were from the city always had but no. Apparently not.

"How did you know?"

"You still have that wide eyed, little girl lost look about you" Piper frowned. "Don't worry. It's cute. It suits you". Piper could feel the blush that was coming over her cheeks but prayed that the darkness was doing a good job of hiding it. Before she had the chance to reply, the stage was lit by some spotlights and the band, just by its side, started up.

Centre stage stood a tall, slim women with a military looking hat perched jauntily on her head. Her hair, long and black, fell way past her shoulders in loose curls, tipped with jet blue; a look Piper would never have thought of but worked surprisingly well for the woman. Her body was clad in a perfectly tailored tail suit jacket, a tight white top and a skin tight pair of leather leggings that really left very little to the imagination. As she band started up and the woman began her song, Piper watched, mesmerised, as she moved about the stage. Her eyes skitted over the audience as a smug smile played at her lips. It was that told the audience she knew exactly how much they were enthralled with her and she was loving every second of it. She'd catch a members eye, singing to them and only them for a second before moving on to another, stealing across the stage with more elegance than Piper thought she could ever possesses.

As the slinky song progressed, a number of dancers came out from behind a curtain at the back of the stage. Each one of them was dressed in a skimpy costume that, once again, fitted to each of their bodies perfectly. Pipers' eyes flitted from thigh high socks to hot pants to crop tops to stockings to body suits to high heels – so many high heels – and back again. But her attention was always brought back to the woman in the middle. Around her, the women swayed and stomped, singing and dancing their way through their well-rehearsed routine.

"She's incredible" Piper sighed in awe. Behind her, she heard the barman laugh lightly.

"Yeah, we get that a lot. That's Alex. She owns this place." Piper raised an eyebrow, turning back to the stage. Alex was making her way across it now, hips swaying with the music and her hands twisting gracefully. Reaching over, she took the hand of one of the dancers and twirled her with expertise. The dancer in question twisted out of the move, dropping to the floor with her knees spread. As a drum brought down a sharp beat, she threw her head to one side, sending her head of wild blondish hair flying around her face as she grinned at the audience. Piper was sure she heard a small gasp escape her as the girl's insanely wide eyes caught hers and she was gifted with a slow, sexy wink before the dancer jumped up onto her feet and carried on dancing with a dark haired woman with brightly painted red lips.

As the opening number wound to an end, the audience whooped and hollered, a couple of them clambering to their feet to show their enjoyment for the opening song. Piper turned to the bar man, taking another sip of her drink. In her mind, the decision to stay or go after one drink had been made up. There was no way she was leaving this place tonight before she had seen the rest of the show and she wouldn't surprise herself if she was back here tomorrow to watch it again.

"They're absolutely amazing" she sighed. The man behind the bar winked at her.

"Best view on the sunset strip" he grinned. Piper laughed, nodding in agreement.

"I'm Piper". A sudden burst of bravery had come over her and she extended her hand to him. He looked at it for a second with a small smile on his lips. Instead of shaking the proffered hand, he turned it palm down and placed a gently kiss on her knuckles, looking up at her through his lashes as he did so.

"Larry. Enchanté".

-x-

_Your thoughts on this would be greatly appreciated!  
Thank you for reading! _

_x_


	2. Backstage

_Thank you for the lovely response to this fic of mine! _

_I know that a couple of you rolled their eyes at Larry being the mighty fine barman character that we know from the film, but this version is going to be a little different and change from the film in terms of Jack/Larry. As you may know, I'm a serious Vauseman shipper so … make of that what you will! _

_I hope you guys enjoy this chapter! _

_-x-_

Another day came with another barrel of disappointment. As Piper slipped her key in the lock, she let out yet another sigh for what must have been the millionth time today. She knew that packing up her life and moving to the big city wouldn't be easy, but she sure as hell didn't expect it to be this hard. Every ounce of hope and enthusiasm that she possessed was slowly being crushed out of her. With every shake of the head and cold response, she could feel another punch of rejection to her gut.

Throwing herself onto her bed, she ran a hand across her face. Every potential place of work had closed for the evening so she sure would just have to chalk today up as another failure. Maybe tomorrow. But for now, she would have to settle in for the night and, what…read a book? Settling herself onto the sheets, she opened the novel and began to read. Not two sentences in, she found her mind wandering, drifting away from the story in front of her. She didn't want to be here reading these words. She knew exactly where she wanted to be. Throwing the book down, she grabbed her coat and wrapped it around her shoulders as she headed to the door, already aiming for the one place that she knew she would end up tonight.

-x-

Descending the stairs, she caught the eye of the guy on the door who had greeted her yesterday.

"Ah, another member of the elite returning club" he winked. Piper smiled.

"I couldn't resist" she told him, her shoulders lifting and falling. The man laughed softly. He knew she'd be back, it was only a matter of when. Girls like her always came back at least once or twice. He could spot them from a mile away. He plucked the note that Piper already had held out to him waiting , ready for the curtain to be pulled back and for her to be let into Litchfield.

"I'm sure you couldn't" he told her, the same smooth grin on his face that she had seen yesterday. "Enjoy your stay" he cocked an eyebrow as she walked under the curtain and nodded at him in acknowledgment.

As it had yesterday, the club almost took her breath away. There was a different crowd, sure, but there was the same intensity filling the room, the audience all waited with bated breath for the dancers to come on stage and make their night. Taking the same seat as she had at the bar the previous night, she watched again as the owner of the club introduced the audience to their evening, all hips and hair and mystery. The dancers twirled around her in the same way as they had yesterday in the same skimpy costumes and yet, the smile on Pipers face was equal, if not bigger, to the one that she had worn yesterday. As the number came to an end, the girls all threw themselves into their final pose and the cymbals crashed.

"Lemme guess. Double vodka soda lime?" Piper dipped her head in answer. Larry was smooth that was for sure. Handing her the glass, he waved away the money that Piper held out to him. "This one's on me" he told her. Piper protested, trying to force the bill into his palm but he was having none of it. She eventually gave up, putting the note in the back pocket of her skinny jeans and taking a sip.

"Thanks, Larry. It's really kind of you"

"Well I return you can keep me company all night. When I'm not yelling at Tricia to do _her freaking JOB. _Tricia! NOW!" His attention had turned to a young blonde who was stood leant against the bar talking to one of the female customers, twirling a piece of hair around her finger flirtatiously. The girl looked over to Larry and rolled her eyes, picked up the tray of drinks that had sat beside her and made her way through the audience.

"She still not bending to your every whim then? Such a shame." one of the dancers that Piper had seen was now leaning on the bar, laughing at Larry's annoyance with the waitress.

"Shut up, Nichols". Piper sipped her drink quietly, watching as the two spoke. She could feel some kind of tension between the pair and she decided that it would be best if she just stay well out of it and sat quietly out of the way.

"Anyway, why isn't that tray already loaded up? We always have our drinks after the first song". Larry, already pouring out a number of shots and drinks, slammed one down onto the tray beside Piper.

"Do you wanna give me a freaking break, Nicky? Give me one minute. Jesus". Nicky frowned.

"Hey, newbie. What's with the nun shit?" she asked, indicating to the jeans and plain black v neck top Piper was wearing.

"Erm –"

"Come on. I'm thirsty as fuck" she cut her off, clearly not having expected an answer. Piper looked at her with confusion for a second, glancing between the tray of drinks and the dancer. Understanding dawned on her and her mouth opened in protest.

"Oh, no. I'm not –"

"Drinks! Just bring the drinks!" the girl called out over her, shutting her up. Piper stayed silent for a second, looking at the dancer who was staring at her with wide eyes which clearly told her to pick up the damn tray. The girl pushed herself off of the bar and strutted back to the stage, slipping behind the curtain. Unsure of what to do, Piper looked over at Larry.

"Nicky Nichols. She's a real delight" Larry deadpanned. "Looks like you're at her service". Piper looked down at the tray again. Fuck. Was she actually doing this? "Just go back and walk around. They'll all take what's theirs, believe me. They're vultures". Piper laughed softly at the bar man's words and picked up the tray. Hesitantly, she made her way over to the stage and pulled back the curtain that she had seen Nicky duck behind.

Piper couldn't believe what she was seeing. Behind the calm and sexy front of the stage there was absolute chaos. Women were running around half dressed, one shoe on, fixing eyelashes, calling for their corsets. Hair pins littered the floor and makeup was strewn over every single available surface. A drink was snatched off of her tray almost immediately, nearly tipping it over but the girl who had done it was already walking past her and snatching up a makeup brush.

"Fiiinally!" Nicky exclaimed, taking a shot and a drink off the tray. Downing the shot and replacing the empty glass, she took a sip of the other drink in her other hand. "So how long have you worked here?" she asked.

"I…I don't act-"

"Work here? I don't remember hiring anyone". The irritation of being cut off yet again was stopped dead as Piper turned to see who had interrupted her. The woman who she had watched cast a spell over the entire audience, Alex, was stood right behind her, one hand on her hip and an eyebrow raised. Now in a short black sparkling swing dress, Piper couldn't help but admire the way the woman oozed beauty.

"Old age finally getting to you, Vause?" Nicky teased. Alex shot her an amused side eye but quickly turned back to Piper.

"I don't actu-"

"One of Larry's girls, aren't you" Nicky stopped her, an arm now thrown around Pipers shoulder which tipped the tray in her hand to one side dangerously. Before she knew it, Alex had reached a hand out and steadied the tray, balancing it safely on the palm of Pipers hand.

"Might want to work on that if you're going to stay here…?" her words trailed off in a question and it took Piper a second to realise what it was she was asking of her.

"Oh. Piper. I'm Piper Chapman."

"Never heard of you" Alex said blankly. "Which I would have if I'd hired you" she said pointedly to Nicky.

"Well you see so many women maybe you don't catch every one of their names?" Nicky winked at Alex who stood looking at the pair, trying to supress a smile. Crossing her arms over her chest, Alex finally let out of a sigh of defeat. She pointed one long finger at Nicky.

"You've done it again, Nichols. Good fucking job"

"When have I ever let you down?" Alex rolled her eyes as Piper looked on confused at the exchange. Turning on her heels, Alex took one step away before twisting back to face Piper.

"No. I can't do it. Jesus, if you're going to work here, you're going to wear something fucking decent Get Sophia to find you a corset or bandeau or _something_". She waved at Piper vaguely with the back of her hand before turning away once more and calling out the name Sophia loudly. As a tall, dark woman poked her head out from behind a rail of glittering costumes, Alex pointed to Piper without looking at her. Sophia followed her finger and visibly winced at Pipers ensemble of clothes.

"Oh, honey. No" she frowned, shaking her head with her hands on her hips. Alex had already disappeared behind the rails and mirrors, but Piper could hear her calling out to different girls loudly. "Lorna you've dropped your fucking lipstick!" "P, bring it to Sophia to fix, you can't wear that", "Jesus, Tucky! Stop fucking praying and get your fishnets on!". Nicky smirked next to her and leant into her ear.

"You're fucking welcome" she grinned at Piper as their eyes met.

"What just happened?" she asked. Nicky let out a small, raspy laugh.

"I just got you a job" Piper frowned.

"You didn't think I worked here at all, did you?" The laugh got louder and Nicky shook her head.

"Jesus, looking like that? Vause wouldn't even _think _about hiring you if you came to an interview like that. And she would _definitely_ remember you, if you know what I mean" Piper didn't, in fact, know what Nicky meant but she figured she'd go with it. "Anyway, you looked like you needed some help. You would have told me to shove it if you didn't want it. How do you think half these girls got hired?" she winked one of those huge eyes.

Sophie held out a sparkling black bralet and a pair of leather leggings not unlike the ones Alex had worn in the opening number to her. Grabbing one of the shots off of Pipers tray and throwing it back, she looked Piper up and down.

"They should fit. If not, come back to me and I'll sort something else out for you" she gave Piper a warm smile and took the tray out of her hand. "Go sort yourself out. And keep these coming" she nodded to the tray and Piper laughed lightly. Beside her, Nicky eyed up the bralet that she now had in her hands.

"Well that's going to be a sight to behold" she laughed. Piper could feel the blush creeping over her cheeks. Looking around her at all the half dressed women who were brazenly getting changed, Piper had a flash of realisation. There appeared to be nowhere for her to get changed without taking her clothes off in front of the women around her and she sure as hell wasn't ready to just strip off right here. Another laugh came from Nicky.

"Bathroom's over there, Newbie. Get your ass moving" she grinned, slapping Piper lightly on her butt before moving over to a mirror and starting to backcomb her hair into an impossible mess. Taking another glance around, Piper made her way over to the bathroom and began to get changed. The bralet fit her perfectly but she felt her boobs were being pushed up under her chin and the leggings felt like she was wearing almost nothing. She was just glad she'd worn underwear that couldn't be seen beneath the skin tight material. She dreaded to think what she looked like, but taking a deep breath, she opened the bathroom door and stepped outside. Immediately, a wolf whistle met her ears.

"Looking good, Newbie". Nicky was looking at her in her mirror, eyeliner brush raised to her eyes. "Sophia sure as hell knows what she's doing". Piper gave her an unsure smile of thankfulness. Seeing a full length mirror, she anxiously made her way over and took a look at her reflection. What she saw was actually pretty freaking good. The top gave her cleavage that she wasn't used to, or knew she had, and the leggings made her legs look, frankly, incredible. She couldn't keep the smile off her face. Sophia came over to her, a pair of black heels dangling from her fingers.

"Here you are, honey" she smiled, handing the shoes over to her. Piper slipped them on and wasn't surprised to see that they fit perfectly. "You look good, girl" she grinned and then turned back to a rail full of glittering clothes. Piper thanked her quietly and then went to make her way back to the bar but a hand on her shoulder turning her stopped her.

"That's better" the hand was removed and Piper was faced with Alex, her arms crossed over her and her eyes scanning the woman up and down thoroughly. "Who knew you had a pretty good body under that frumpy shit you had on." The look of approval on her face made Pipers stomach jump but she wasn't sure what to say in response.

"Thank you?" Alex chuckled, her laugh coming out deep and raspy, making Piper smile.

"Get back to the bar, yea? I'll see you around" Alex smiled smugly and Piper nodded, picking up the tray full of empty glasses that Sophia had left on the side for her. She did as she was told and found her way back through the audience and towards the bar where Larry was grinning lecherously at her.

"I see Sophia found you" he laughed. Piper nodded, smiling. "She knows what he's doing." The look of appreciation that she received from him was not too different to the one that she had received from Alex but somehow, it felt completely different and she tried to ignore the small feeling of disgust that ran through down her spine.

Soon enough, all thoughts of her appearance were gone from her mind as she spent the evening rushing around and learning, serving drinks and taking orders. By the end of the shift, she was absolutely shattered but completely satisfied. As she was pouring her drinks, her eyes would fall to the stage and she would watch the dancers giving their life on stage, throwing their bodies around and evoking huge cheers from the audience. They were beautiful and mesmerising and _god_ Piper wanted to do that.

That night Piper swore to herself that whatever happened, she would make it onto that stage.

Somehow, she would.

-x-

_Big thanks to RavensDescendant, etxbkst, izzielg and the four guests that took the time to review the first chapter! It's very much appreciated! _

_x_


	3. The Meeting

With the sun streaming through her window, Piper groaned and rolled to the other side of her bed, her forearm pressed over her eyes. Her body clock was used to waking her up at a reasonable time in the morning but her late night at the club meant that she was far too tired and not yet willing to face the day. The thought of her new job brought a smile to her face; she knew that it couldn't be forever but it was a steady income for now and she felt she deserved a break from the endless rejection she had faced the past few days. The night before had been a blur of drinks and cocktails and shots and new names that she prayed to god she remembered. The girls had all been nice, welcoming her as she kept the drink flow backstage steady. To be honest, she had a feeling that _anyone _who kept the flow of alcohol constant would be welcomed with open arms, but that didn't bother her. Piper let out a small laugh at the memory of the world backstage. The chaos that she had initially seen had only got worse as costumes were hastily discarded and grabbed up, makeup was thrown with expertise onto faces and hairspray hung thick in the air. By the end of the night, Piper was sure that Sophia was going to explode, spending the majority of her night hanging sparkling costumes back on their rails or collecting them for repairs. But instead of shouting, she had just congratulated them all on a great show, told them to put broken costumes in the usual place for repairs and to get their asses to the nearest pizza place because she was starving.

The bar hadn't exactly been calm, either. As the night got busier, Piper had thanked her younger self for working in a bar over the summer holidays. The skills that she learnt there were the only things keeping her afloat; there had been no time for training and so her knowledge of cocktails and what drink went in which glass were invaluable. Larry was nice to work with though, helping her out whenever he could and the waitresses all batted jokes between themselves as they passed each other. The two 'ghetto' girls were as thick as thieves and Piper was pretty sure that there wasn't a time they weren't laughing. Taystee and Black Cindy – Piper wasn't sure what happened to 'white Cindy' - had both eyed Piper up suspiciously when she had held out her hand upon meeting them and then slapped it away with a loud laugh, a roll of their eyes and a "ahhhyy these white girls!". They were loud and in your face and the customers seemed to lap it up, instantly being pulled in by their infectious personalities. Even Tricia, the seemingly useless waitress Larry had shouted at, had turned out to be pretty good, keeping her tables happy and ensuring they tipped well.

Dragging herself out of bed, Piper began the process of making herself a coffee. She hadn't yet had time to get any real food in and the pizza she had ordered the night before sat looking up at her temptingly. There was a moment as Piper looked at it. Cold pizza for breakfast wasn't unheard of and she _was _hungry… She shook her head, taking her coffee back to the bedroom and began to get ready for the day. She'd grab something on her way out. Today was a day for shopping. If she was going to continue working in Litchfield, she'd have to update her wardrobe a little so, with her bag hooked over her shoulder and her headphones in, Piper headed towards the shops.

-x-

Entering Litchfield felt odd today. The music coming from inside was music from the charts, not the slow, slinky kind that Piper had become used to being greeted with. Speaking of greetings, the guy on the door, whose name she had learned was Bennett, wasn't there either. The curtain was tied back with a tassel allowing her to walk straight in without paying her entrance fee, something she had to admit she wouldn't miss. Litchfield, before the lights were dimmed and the place became _Litchfield,_ was like a different place entirely. Larry moved around behind the bar, stocking up on alcohol and putting all the freshly washed glasses away. Lorna appeared from behind the curtain on stage in a short denim dress and heels, her face already split into a grin.

"You can't just do things like that, Nicky" she scolded lightly. Nicky appeared behind her, her high shorts and oversized shirt tucked into it a far cry from the costumes Piper had seen her in so far.

"He shouldn't have stolen my fucking bagel!" Nicky protested.

"He didn't know it was wrong. He's a _dog"_ Piper smiled at the pair's conversation, trying to find a moment to interrupt.

"Er… do you guys know where Alex is?" she piped in. The two women looked over to her and smiled in greeting.

"Newbie. You're back. We didn't scare you off last night then?" Piper shook her head.

"I loved it" she breathed, unable to keep the smile from her face. Lorna laughed as Nicky gave her one of her cocky half smiles that Piper was never entirely sure the meaning of.

"Alright, calm down. It's the Litch, not Studio 54. Alex is probably in her office. I'd knock before you go in if you don't want a letter opener in your head". The two girls wandered over to the bar as Piper gave her thanks and made her way backstage. She could already hear Nicky winding Larry up and she wondered what it was that had happened between the two to give them their edge of dislike. Her initial assumption that they didn't like each other was all but confirmed the night before as the jibes and jabs had been exchanged every time Nicky had come over to the bar. But for now, Piper needed to focus on finding Alex's office. She had been told by the club owner to seek her out when she arrived for work and they would talk hours etcetera.

Seeing one of the dancers that she hadn't spoken to before sitting in front of a mirror and applying thick black eyeliner, Piper hesitate momentarily before approaching the girl. She was one of a pair that Piper had noted the night before, never seeing the two apart. If she were honest, the tear drop tattoo that this one had made her slightly nervous of her but needs must, as they say.

"Erm…Do you know where Alex's office is?" she asked, her voice quiet. The girl looked at her in the mirror and threw her long black hair over her shoulder. Instead of saying anything, she simply pointed to Pipers left and then continued with her makeup. Piper thanked the girl and followed the direction she had been given. Spotting an intricate black metal work spiral staircase leading upwards, Piper assumed that this was the place she was looking for and climbed the stairs cautiously. Knocking on the door as instructed, she was relieved to hear the raspy "come in" that came almost instantly.

Pushing open the door, Piper glanced quickly around the room. It wasn't the standard office that she had expected although she probably should have known better than to expect anything by now. It was reasonably dark, reminding Piper of a gentleman's club, all red and leather and feeling very much like the room should be smoky. But it had a homely feel to it, with a sofa across one wall stacked high with black, red and orange cushions. A patterned dress makers mannequin stood in one corner with a couple of meters of sapphire coloured material draped over it, pooling at the floor. A large desk with a spotlight over it faced Piper and behind it, looking at her curiously, was Alex.

"You decided to come back then" she smiled. Piper nodded, closing the door behind her.

"Of course". Alex motioned for Piper to sit down on the sofa and she followed, a bundle of papers in her hand and a pencil in the other. Alex curled her feet beneath her on the sofa not too far from where Piper had sat.

"What do you think?" she asked, holding out the papers which were actually costume sketches. Piper took them from her and flicked through them. They were beautiful fashion drawings of women in what appeared to be adapted prison jumpsuits. One was cut into tightly fitting shorts and a low cut crop top, another made into a clinging playsuit, sleeves rolled up and neckline plunging. Each of the models were of different shapes and sizes, their costumes thought out to be flattering for their individual shape and Piper easily recognised each of the dancers that she had met or seen last night.

"They're amazing. You did these?" Piper asked, looking up to Alex who had leant in closed to look at the sketches as she flicked through them. Pulling back, Alex nodded.

"Who else is going to? I'm thinking of doing a routine to Cellblock Tango. Half these girls have committed some kind of crime. May as well put them in jumpsuits, hey" Alex winked, taking the sketches back. She gave them all another quick once over, looking pretty pleased with the results. "They need a bit more work but hopefully the new number will be underway soon".

"It sounds brilliant. Who'll make them?"

"Sophia, Lorna and I. I'm no good with actually _making _them but those two can whack out a costume in a couple of minutes. I just hot glue the rhinestones on" Alex shrugged.

"And what's a costume without rhinestones?" Piper asked, eyebrows raised. Alex pointed a finger, a smile on her lips.

"Exactly" the pair laughed. "Anyway. Business." Reaching over, Alex threw the papers the short distance to her desk, in doing so changing the mood of the room. Piper had the feeling that her new boss was every inch the business woman. Every successful female Piper had met had had the two sides that Piper was already beginning to see with Alex; the calm, relaxed causal side and the firm, business owner that got shit done. Piper supposed that it was necessary if one was to be successful and if she were honest, she kind of liked it. It meant that work and play were kept separate, often, she found, a very good thing.

Alex told her that the club opened every night except Mondays and Tuesdays and she'd be required to work all of them. Her social life would probably suffer, she'd be tired and she'd find glitter in places she never even knew she had but she could help herself to drinks, within reason, and the family they had there was a tightknit one. One that she wouldn't find at another bar or club. Piper had nodded her way through the meeting, trying to focus on the words and not the assortment of oddments that surrounded her. Every shelf held something exotic looking that she'd never seen before and the walls had their fair share of trinkets. Behind the sofa that the two sat on, the wall was covered in shelves which were filled with haphazardly stacked books. Looking at Alex, Piper could see the shelf out of the corner of her eye and she was slightly concerned that at any moment, one of the piles of books would fall or those leaning against each other would finally give up and tumble down onto them both. But they didn't and it wasn't too long before Alex was asking if she had any questions. Piper thought for a moment, wondering if she should ask the question on her mind before decided that she may as well. The worse that she could be told was no.

"I was just wondering if there is any chance that I'd be able to become one of the dancers at some point?" Alex raised a dubious eyebrow.

"You want to be a dancer?" Piper felt suddenly self-conscious under the woman's gaze.

"Well, you know, I know it's not going to happen soon but maybe at one point? I can audition or something if you have them. I just…you all look so incredible on stage." She sighed, almost wistfully, earning a small smirk from Alex. "I just want to do that". Alex remained silent for a second, looking Piper over in a similar way to how she'd looked over her sketches; critically. Evaluating.

"Have you ever danced before?" Piper could feel the burn in her cheeks.

"Well… a bit" Alex laughed, her eyes creased at the corners.

"Bullshit. You've never danced in your life! You only got a job yesterday because Nichols thought she'd fooled me again and now you want a promotion" Piper could feel herself shrinking by the second. Alex was right, she shouldn't have asked, especially not the day after she had landed the job through pure chance. Jesus, did she never know her boundaries? Alex was still smiling in amusement at her, looking her over. "You're determined, I'll give you that" she paused. "I like that in a woman". Piper looked up in surprise, catching her eye and smiling shyly. "I tell you what, you can come along to auditions next time we need someone and I'll give you a shot. But I'm not gonna hire you over someone better just because you flap those doe eyes" Piper grinned.

"Thanks, Alex". Alex rolled her eyes at the gratitude oozing through her voice.

"Oh and if you're around on Sunday, we close a bit early and have a party of sorts. None of us really get to go out on the weekend so we close up and have some drinks and shit here. We're closed on Monday so there's room for hangovers. You're obviously welcome to join if you're free. It gets pretty loud and Nichols can be a nightmare, but it's usually a lot of fun." She shrugged. Piper didn't doubt for a second that Nicky with a couple of drinks in her was something to behold but she wouldn't miss it for the world. Tonight was Saturday and Piper had been glad of the distraction of work whilst the rest of the world drank away their week with friends. She knew hardly anybody in the city and had expected it to be a pretty lonely one but the thought of Sunday night drinks was definitely one to look forward to.

"I'd love to. It sounds brilliant. I'll definitely be there".

"Yeah, yeah. Get out of here. We open in thirty. Go get ready" Alex dismissed her gently, a smile on her lips. Piper nodded, making her way over to the door with mumbled thank yous and goodbyes.

"And Kid?" she turned. Alex smirked at her, yet again. "I'd get some fucking dance lessons if I were you" Piper couldn't help the laugh that escaped her. She nodded.

"Yes, ma'am" Alex immediately stopped laughing.

"Don't ever call me ma'am again" she warned, eyebrows raised. Piper felt herself flush, her mind completely emptying of all sense.

"Oh, sorry.. er, yes Sir". Alex looked at her blankly causing Piper to hastily grab the door handle and rip it open.

"Sorry, I mean Alex. Yes Alex. Sorry" Alex rolled her eyes and stabbed a finger in the direction of the door.

"Out!" As the door slammed behind Piper, Alex could feel the small grin on her lips and she tutted to herself. "Fucking idiot" she said into the empty room about the girl. Making her way over to her desk, she pulled out a fresh piece of paper and began to idly sketch another costume, this one showcasing the long, slim legs of the blonde.

You know. Just in case.

-x-

_Thank you to all those who have read, especially to shrub-skinz, izzielg, takeniteazy, Kuchiki Everlark, Christi06 and the 6 guests that took the time to review! _

_To the guest that expressed concern that this fic was too similar to Hot Child in the City, I have completely different plans for this which should hopefully become clear soon. I adore Julies work and would never wish to step on anybody's toes. If you have any more concerns, please don't hesitate to message me. Thank you for drawing my attention to it though; I'll do my best to stop as many parallels as I can. Thank you for reading. _


	4. And a Pineapple

"How're you doing, Pipes?" Larry asked as he slid past her behind the bar. Piper nodded and gave the man a smile. It was Sunday night and Pipers third shift was going pretty well so far. There had been the occasional drink mix up, but once she batted her lashes and apologised as best she could, the customers had always laughed it off and tipped her generously anyway. The show was nearly over with only one or two songs left for the girls to perform and Piper was excited for the party that was promised afterwards. It would be nice for her to let her hair down and get to know some of the girls a bit better; alcohol always made it easier to socialise.

"Could you just bring this tray over to the table over there?" Larry asked, filling the last of the drinks and nodding to the corner where a small group of young men sat. Piper offered an 'of course' and made her way over to the table where she could hear the men talking and laughing in what sounded to her like… Russian, perhaps? Her guess was confirmed when the men greeted her with big smiles and began to introduce themselves. They were apparently regulars and knew nearly all of the waitresses and dancers so wanted to know who the new 'devushka' was. They seemed like a nice set of guys and Piper went back to the bar wondering who it was they actually were. Larry glanced over to them.

"Oh, they're Reds family. They come in quite a lot"

"Red?"

"Our supplier. Her and Alex have worked together for years. Rumour has it they hated each other for a long time but," he shrugged "they're pretty close now. Her sons come in for a discounted price because of her. She might come tonight if she has time. She sometimes turns up to say hello to Nicky and the other girls". Piper gave a small smile and looked up to the stage where the girls were now throwing their bodies from side to side, hips popping and arms flying with wild precision. She loved to watch them when she had a moment and she wondered when the show would lose the draw that she felt. Surely seeing the same show would grow tedious, but deep down Piper doubted that it ever would. She knew that it was changed and adapted and she was sure that with each new number and costume change, she'd fall straight back in love.

As the girls left the stage, the audience clapped and hollered their appreciation, each of them glancing at their neighbours and smiling. Every night, the room would be filled with 'that was incredible's and 'did you see _that _dancer though? She was gorgeous' as they drank the last of their drinks and then made their way to the door and up the stairs, into the cold night and away from the glamour of Litchfield. Usually, Taystee and Black Cindy would then begin to wander in between the tables, collecting up the empty glasses as they shared jokes and laughed loudly. But tonight, Taystee looked up to where the lights and music controls were and grinned.

"Come on, Boo! Get it started already!" she yelled. Piper tried to see who it was she was talking to but couldn't because of the lights shining down into her eyes.

"Jesus, alright. Give me a fucking second!" she heard called back and Taystee laughed loudly, turning back to the tables and shoving as many glasses into her arms as she could handle. Loud music suddenly started playing, the heavy beat instantly giving the place a party feel, much to the waitress's happiness.

"It's been a long week. I need a drink" The sound of Tricia by her side startled Piper slightly but she couldn't say that she disagreed. A drink would be perfect right now and although she didn't know the girls too well, from what she'd seen she was pretty sure that there would be more than a couple consumed tonight. The tables were cleared in next to no time and Piper laughed at Taystee and Cindy who were practically throwing the glasses into the sink in their eagerness to get the party started. A couple of the tables were pushed to one side to make a bit more room and then the girls were appearing from behind the curtain in their own clothes. Nicky was the first to the bar, walking straight behind it and setting up a long line of shot glasses.

"Ready for a good one, newbie?" Nicky grinned at Piper who sat awkwardly at the bar. She hated feeling that way, but all of the girls seemed so close and as they had come out, she suddenly had the worry that there might not be a place in the group for her.

As all of the girls readied themselves to take one of the shots that Nicky was preparing, they looked over to Piper expectantly.

"I'm afraid you're going to have to do a couple more than that" Lorna laughed, looking at the one shot that Piper had her hand wrapped around.

"Four for you, chica" Maritza called and Piper looked down at the four full glasses that were in front of her that she assumed would be other peoples.

"It's tradition" Cindy said plainly, flicking her comb through her hair a couple of times. Piper doubted she would be able to do the four shots without wanting to vomit and she looked at them blankly for a moment, trying to gauge just how drunk they would make her. She always thought that she could hold her drink but it had been a while since she had been on a night out and she didn't particularly want to get hammered and make a fool of herself at the first opportunity.

"Which fucker came up with this dumb rule?" Piper asked, a tiny smile on her face to show that she was joking.

"That would be me, kid" Piper turned to see Alex walking over to the group, arms crossed and a smirk upon her face as the rest of the girls all laughed loudly together at the insult to their boss. Taking one of the shots off of the bar, Alex held it up in a toast to Piper, tapped it onto the bar for good luck and then threw it down her neck. All of the other girls quickly followed, tapping the bottom of the shots and then tipping their heads back and emptying their glasses. Alex looked at Piper with a mix of expectation and amusement on her face. Piper was sure from that look that Alex didn't think she would do all four and so, lining them up, she took a deep breath. With one in each hand, she quickly downed both of them, then picked up the other two and swallowed them before she had time to think about the burning in her throat. Shaking her head and waving her hands in front of her face, Piper tried to wave away the taste of the alcohol and the girls all cheered her accordingly. Alex laughed, taking a step closer and putting one hand on her back.

"Come on, let's get you a real drink. Well done". Her tone was light and Nicky began to pour out some vodka mixers for both Alex and Piper. Larry, still stood behind the bar, caught Pipers eye and she grinned at him. He stood with his arms crossed over himself, leaning casually against the back wall of the bar and looking only at her. Piper pulled a quick, playful face at him and the pair laughed before her attention was pulled away and towards the loud conversation that had started up between the dancers.

The bar was a free for all, with anyone able to walk behind it and pour themselves a drink. Within the hour, the two Spanish girls, Flaca and Martiza, had started dancing together on the dance floor and before long, nearly everyone had followed them. As Alex had warned, Nicky never had a drink far from her hand and Piper marvelled at how much the girl could handle. She was a good laugh though, shouting light hearted insults at anyone who passed her. Sipping on her drink, Piper watched from the bar as she took Lorna's hand and spun her, making the girl laugh loudly and slightly stumble. The two were practically inseparable and Piper leant in a little closer to Big Boo.

"Are those two together?" she asked. Boo followed Pipers eyes and nodded towards them.

"Nichols and Morello? Nah, not yet. Morello supposedly has a boyfriend, but noones ever seen him. Nichols is crazy about her though, the idiot. They've been like that for fucking ages now. Something'll happen at some point" Boo winked in a 'believe me' kind of way and Piper nodded. She wouldn't be surprised if the pair ended up together but then again, if Lorna had a boyfriend…

"Having a good time?" Larry asked, leaning forward from behind the bar. Boo gave him a cold look and then slid off her stool to join the others on the dance floor. Piper nodded and smiled.

"Yeah, it's a lot of fun!" she told him. "How come you're behind there still?" Larry hesitated.

"Old habits die hard, I guess. Want another?" he asked, nodding to her almost empty glass. Piper nodded with a grin, downing the remnants of her drink and slid the glass over to him. She decided that after one more drink, she'd go and have a dance. The alcohol was definitely getting to her and she found that she couldn't keep the smile from her face. The girls were all so lovely and she'd already spoken to a couple of them, getting to know them a bit better. Daya was a sweet girl who seemed to have a bit of a wall up but she'd been welcoming to Piper and the two had talked for a while before she had disappeared into the crowd. Big Boo was in charge of the music and lighting for the shows and she'd assured Piper that she'd got enough music ready for the entire night. She was a big woman with a huge personality and although a bit in your face, she'd made Piper laugh until her sides hurt.

"So what brought you to a place like this anyway?" Larry asked.

"Oh, you know. Big city. Big dreams. I thought it might work out" Piper shrugged. Larry eyes skitted over her face.

"And has it?" Piper laughed very slightly, taking another mouthful of alcohol.

"I don't know yet. We'll just have to wait and see, won't we". She gave Larry a wink and giggled. Yup. The alcohol was definitely getting to her. Fuck it.

"Excuse me" she told Larry, slipping off of her stool and going over to the girls on the dance floor without waiting for a response from the man. She was aware that she was a terrible dancer, but as she started to move her body in time with the beat, she heard laughter around her.

"Yo! White girl's tryna dance!" she heard Poussey shout next to her and she turned, mock annoyance on her face. A wave of laughter passed around them and Piper gave her the middle finger, turning away and continuing to sway with the music.

"Someone teach this bitch how to move!" Black Cindy yelled, pointing to Piper. Flaca and Martiza were next to her before she knew it, holding her waist and trying to teach her how to 'loosen the fuck up' and move her hips, much to the appreciation of the other women. The two girls danced close together and Piper tried to copy their movements, rolling her hips and twirling her hands above her head in a way she hoped didn't look completely ridiculous. The pair watched their handiwork and clapped their hands in appreciation. The entire group was watching as Piper grinned and carried on, beginning to dance closer with the pair. The rest of the women closed in around them, as they all started to dance again, taking it in turns to try and teach Piper a new dance move, some of which she mastered and some of which she failed epically at. The girls all seemed to have fun watching her attempts though and by the end of the night, Piper had quite a collection of moves and the approval of all of her new colleagues.

-x-

It didn't seem like anywhere near late enough for Piper before the girls began to depart, a large group of them going in search of food. As the room emptied, Piper saw Daya slip out from behind the backstage curtain and watched, wondering where it was that she had been. Her eyes widened as she saw Bennett, the guy who worked the door, following her out and they both headed towards the exit.

"Bye guys!" Nicky called after them with an exaggerated wave, making sure they knew that _she_ knew exactly what had been going on.

"I didn't realise they were together?!" Nicky shrugged.

"They don't think we know but it's pretty fucking obvious, I think you'll agree. Are you gonna go with them to get food? Or you gonna stay with me and Vause and have a couple more?" she asked. Piper thought about it for a moment, looking at the girls who were gathering their coats together, moments away from leaving.

"I think I'll stay for a couple". Nicky gave her a lopsided smile.

"Good choice" she jumped up from her stool and made her way behind the bar, grabbing one of the bottles of vodka and then walking over to one of the tables that the customers used to watch the show from. Looking behind her to where Piper was still sat at the bar, she rolled her eyes.

"Well come on, blondie. Grab three shot glasses and get over here". Piper gave her a huge smile and an exaggerated nod. She felt quite unsteady on her feet and the heels that she had been wearing since the beginning of her shift were suddenly a lot less appealing. If she was honest, she didn't know how she had managed to dance the night away in them but it was definitely time to get them the hell off. Bending in half at the waist, she made a feeble attempt to pull at the laces that the ankle boots were tied with, much to Nickys amusement.

"What're you laughing at, Nichols?" she vaguely heard Alex ask as she came from backstage after making sure that everything was locked up and sorted for the night. Piper could only assume that Nicky pointed at her because she soon heard Alex laughing hysterically at her struggle too.

"Jesus, kid. What the fuck. Come here". Piper didn't move, instead becoming more determined to undo the knot that she had managed to make far worse. A moment later, she heard Alex walk over to her, her footsteps far heavier than they usually were, the alcohol she had consumed having its effect. Alex's face appeared before Piper as the woman knelt down in front of her and batted her hands away. Piper watched with blurred eyes as she tried to undo the knot - it took far longer than it would have had a sober person been set the task, but she eventually let out a triumphant yelp and pulled the shoe off of Pipers foot.

"Ahhh, thanks Alex!" Piper grinned. Alex tipped an imaginary hat to her and smiled. Nicky, watching the entire thing and still laughing at the drunk fools, decided to raise a very valid point.

"What about the other one, Vause". Alex groaned, pulling Pipers other foot closer to her as Nicky let out another burst of loud laughter that set Piper off giggling too. With her shoes now dangling from one hand, Piper made her way over to the table closely followed by Alex. The pair sat down in their chairs and Nicky poured some of the liquid out of the bottle into the three glasses.

"So, d'you wanna play a game, ladies?" Nicky asked. Piper thought about it for a moment and then nodded her head, unaware that Alex was rolling her eyes beside her.

"Nichols, we're not playing spin the bottle, truth or dare, seven minutes in heaven, or any other game that involved you making out with my new waitress" Alex deadpanned. Nicky seemed deflated but her laugh gave her amusement away.

"God, Vause. You're always trying to ruin my fun. You never used to be opposed to any of my group bonding sessions" Alex laughed and swatted Nickys arm lightly.

"Morello wouldn't be pleased, anyway"

"Fuck Lorna"

"You wish"

"So fucking hard". The pair burst out laughing, leaning towards each other, their eyes crinkled. Piper sat watching the two banter back and forth like she were watching a tennis match. It was weirdly relaxing, sitting and listening to them laughing and sighing. It was like a night out with her friends at home and the thought that she now actually _had_ friends here was comforting. With one elbow resting on the table and her head in the palm of her hand, Piper followed the conversation with a small smile on her face, enjoying the ease with which the two women spoke. She wasn't sure exactly what it was that Nicky did in terms of the club, but she was pretty sure that she was more than just a dancer. It was clear that she and Alex were very close and very good friends outside of the club, but there was something else between them that Piper had been trying to put her finger on for the last couple of days. The way that they knew what the other was thinking and exactly how to make each other laugh or annoyed or shut up. It was as if –

"Have you two ever fucked?" Piper asked. The two women stopped laughing almost immediately, unsure of where the hell the question had come from. They exchanged a look, both silently asking the other if they knew what had caused the sudden enquiry.

"No" Alex said plainly, her face wrinkled in disgust a little. Nicky sat up straighter, her mouth dropped open in shock for a moment.

"You fucking liar!" her voice was raised slightly with indignation.

"What?!" Alex cried, unsure of what it was that she had said wrong. Despite the apparent tone of annoyance, the atmosphere was still light and Piper could tell that there was no real anger behind Nickys words.

"You always fucking deny it! But everyone knows what was going on under that water, Vause. _Every _one" Nicky held up her hand next to her head and subtly jolted two fingers forwards and backwards, making both Alex and Piper pull an oh-good-god-Nichols kind of face.

"Yeah, well I never fucked _you _did I. So I was actually being honest"

"You're lying to yourself. You just know you'll never get better than me" Nicky said, tossing her hair over one shoulder and pulling what Piper thinks was an attempt at her best smug face. The effect was slightly clouded by the fact she very nearly poked herself in the eye. Alex turned to Piper.

"Anyway. _I_ have never fucked Nichols but there was one night we all went out together and there was a pool and a lot of alcohol and glitter and –"

"and pineapples" Nicky added helpfully. Alex shuddered a little bit and waved a hand, trying to dismiss the conversation.

"Yeah and pineapples and anyway, it got weird. Moving on" she insisted. Piper nodded, her head still in her hand.

"Sooo… that's a yes" Piper clarified calmly. Nicky started laughing, the new girl's teasing of her boss amusing her whereas Alex was looking at her blankly.

"I like you, Blondie" she giggled.

"I'm thinking I made a mistake in hiring you, _Blondie_" Alex told her, an eyebrow raised. Piper and Alex looked at each other blankly for a moment before they both started laughing. Nicky leant over and pulled her shot glass over to her with one hand whilst pushing a glass to each of the other women with the other.

"Time for a drink, ladies". The three took their drinks, hissing as they lowered their glasses.

"So what game?" Nicky asked, filling the glasses again in preparation.

"Oh, fuck. Just play higher lower" Alex said after a couple of minutes of the trio trying to decide on a game. The woman stood up and made her way over to the bar, her steps still heavier than usual and her path not entirely straight. Taking a pack of cards from behind the bar, she came back and slammed them on the table in front of Nicky.

"Deal 'em out, Nichols".

-x-

Closing up the club, Alex missed the lock four times before the key slipped in and she was able to close up the place properly. Nicky and Piper laughed from behind her as she sighed in frustration.

"Fucking thing" she cursed, yanking the key out of the lock and turning back to the two girls. After discussing where they lived, Piper had found out that Nicky and Alex shared an apartment that wasn't too far from where Piper had found herself staying. The two decided that they would walk Piper home and they linked arms, laughing as they made their way down the street in the early hours of the morning. Piper had her heels back on and was relishing in the noise that they made as they walked down the sidewalk.

"Day off tomorrow, you fuckers. Got any plans?" Nicky asked Piper, her head dropped forward slightly and her words more than slurred. Piper shook her head lazily.

"Nooooope. Sleep. Hang over. TV." She yawned loudly and heard Alex giggle beside her.

"You're boring as fuck, Piper" Alex told her and Piper could almost hear her roll her eyes.

"I am not boring!" Piper moaned. "I am fun! A lot of fun! I stayed and drank with you! I'm _fun_, god dammit". Nicky and Alex exchanged glances as the blonde stamped her foot defiantly. Alex raised an eyebrow and Nicky bit back a laugh.

"Okay, okay. You're fun. Got it" Alex laughed and Piper nodded in agreement. "Well if you want to be a little bit more fun, you can come over tomorrow if you like. Nichols and I usually order take out and veg in front of the TV" Nicky nodded enthusiastically.

"Ey, Chapman. You think you can handle the excitement?" Nicky asked, nudging into her and sending the three of them stumbling to the left. Piper focused her eyes on Nicky slowly and unlinked her arm from Alex's. She raised her middle finger to Nicky.

"Ffffffuck you. I'll be there. And I'll bring pizza. And fuck you" Nicky and Alex laughed hysterically at the woman as Alex pushed her arm back through Pipers.

"Deal, Blondie. Deal".

The women arrived at the door to Pipers apartment block and looked up at it sceptically.

"You might wanna think about moving to somewhere half decent" Nicky told her, an eyebrow raised. Piper simply sighed and ignored her.

"It's been _love_ly" Piper told the two women, searching in her bag for her keys. Pulling them out with a victorious yelp, she swung them round her finger.

"See you soon, newbie" Nicky gave her another lopsided smile and a slap on the back. Piper nodded, turning the key in the lock and looking back at the two women.

"Sleep well, Pipes" Alex grinned, leaning forward and giving Piper a kiss on the cheek which brought out a large shout and whistle from Nicky.

"Get in there, Vause!" she yelled, walking away from the building, stumbling slightly. Alex laughed softly, remaining with Piper.

"Sorry about her" Alex apologised, a smile on her lips. "She's always trying to hook me up with someone or another. Or other. Someone or other." There was a small frown line of confusion between her brows as she tried to get her words straight, making Piper smile.

"Good night, Alex" she said softly, slumping back against the wall behind her. Alex gave her a small smile, her eyes heavy.

"Good night, Pipes" she said, leaning forward and kissing her on the cheek again. As she turned and walked away, Piper watched her and laughed as she weaved her way towards Nicky who was stood waving at her, shouting and yelling.

"She's got you, Boss. Right under her pretty blonde thuuuu-uumb. Told you you'd like her. You're fucking _welcome!" _Nicky laughed loudly as Alex met her and she threw an arm around her shoulder.

"I'm gonna kill you in your sleep, you know that?"

The pair carried on walking, swaying slightly and trying to hold each other up in their hells. Piper could still hear them laughing at each other as she entered her building and closed the door. Making her way up the stairs, she was surprised, and extremely proud of herself, that she only stumbled once or twice. Falling against a wall, she laughed in the empty stairwell. By the time she reached the top of the stairs and made it to her front door, Piper was absolutely shattered. She'd had a lovely evening with the girls (and guys) but she was ready to tumble into bed and sleep the alcohol away. Fetching herself a glass of water – something she had learnt was vital in university – she lay down on her bed, fully clothed.

Before she knew it, she was fast asleep, snoring lightly with one hand off the side of the bed.

In her mind, she was sure that she could still hear Alex and Nicky throwing names and laughing at each other…

-x-

_So I'm not too sure about this chapter, guys. But I wanted to get Piper a little bit more involved with all the girls and alcohol has a funny way of doing that. _

_Thank you so much for the amazing response to this fic, to all those who have added alerts and favourites and especially to __**raquellu47, shrub-skinz, krista430, ToTheBarricades, emilyjasmine, Christi06, izzielg, Rhythm0fLife **__and the __**2 guests**__ that took the time to review. I really appreciate it. _

_X _


	5. Pizza and Pyjamas

_Bzzzz. _

Piper groaned and dropped the back of her hand onto her forehead. She was pretty sure that the day wasn't going to be a total wipe off because of her hangover, but she knew that there would be at least a couple of hours of discomfort. God, she hated that so much fun was always punished in one way or another. Why couldn't alcohol just let you have a good time and then cheerfully wave goodbye and be on its way? Why did it have to hang around the next day, sitting on the edge of your brain and making sure that you remember the _Know Your Limits_ posters that screamed at you in every bar restroom?

The sound of her phone buzzing had woken her up and as turned to see who it was that had messaged her at this ungodly hour of 11am, she immediately turned the lighting on the screen down. Ouch. No thank you.

_**Are you coming over then, shitbag? **_

Piper read the text message from 'Nivkt" and laughed quietly to herself. She vaguely remembered taking the girls number last night but clearly her motor skills hadn't exactly been on top form.

_**Just woken up. I'll be over in an hour or so. Want me to bring anything? **_

Dragging herself out of bed, she put some music on and began to get ready, puling clothes out of her wardrobe before remembering that she had been told in no uncertain terms that she was only allowed to wear pyjamas. Glancing down at the clothes she had fallen asleep in – the same ones she had worn to work – she peeled them off and replaced them with a tank top and a pair of long white pyjama trousers with pale blue strips down the side. Pulling her hair up into a ponytail, she began about cleaning her face of the previous night's makeup.

Her phone buzzed twice in quick succession.

_**Just your cheery self**_

Piper clicked onto the next message, this one labelled as being from "Alex". Clearly she had managed to focus enough to get that name saved in her phone properly.

_**Don't listen to Nicky. Bring chips and dip. And slippers. And a couple of DVDs and some coke. **_

Piper laughed. She could see the two, already sat on the sofa in front of the TV, discussing the messages to and from Piper, Nicky ignoring the list of things that Alex listed to bring and then deciding to do it herself.

_**Yes, Ma'am. **_

The reply came quickly.

_**I told you to never call me that again. You wanna start looking for another job? **_

With her toothbrush hanging out of her mouth, Piper tapped out a quick reply of_**I do not. I'll make sure all is present and correct. See you soon x **_ and got ready as quickly as she could.

-x-

It wasn't long before Piper was buzzing to be let into the apartment of her newly found friends. Nickys voice came down through the speaker almost instantly, telling her to hurry the fuck up, The Proposal was starting.

The door had been left slightly open for her and as she cautiously entered the apartment, she saw the back of Alex and Nickys heads as they sat on the couch, eye apparently firmly fixed on the TV and Sandra Bullock in her power suit. She received a greeting of a wave from Nicky, her eyes not leaving the screen, and Alex smiled at her, turning slightly to see what she had brought with her.

"Pizza! Nice one, Kid. For that you can share my blanket". Nicky was kicked over slightly and Piper was told to ignore the moan of annoyance that she gave out. Dumping the goodies she had brought with her on the coffee table, Piper gladly took a slice of pizza and curled down in between the two women under the blue blanket that Alex was up for her to get under.

"I love this film" Piper said around a mouthful of pizza. Nicky nodded, reaching over and taking a gulp straight from the bottle of coke. She passed it over to Alex who took a swig and then offered it to Piper who shook her head, eyes fixed on the screen.

The trio watched the film happily, laughing and munching on the pizza long after it was cold. Nicky occasionally offered a comment or two, usually teasing Alex about being a bitch of a boss as well. Alex simply offered her a middle finger without even glancing at her.

As the pair on screen ran into each other, butt naked, Piper howled, leaning forward as the laughter wracked her body. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Nicky looking at Alex, pointing to the both of them and then to the screen where Sandra Bullock lay naked on top of Ryan Reynolds. Looking to Alex, Piper caught the tail end of her eye roll and smirked.

"I'm not entirely sure if you think you're being subtle, but you're really not" she said, turning to Nicky who was now looking at her with wide eyes and as much innocence as she could muster.

"Subtle? Not me, Blondie. Subtle as an eclipse. If I had something to tell you, I would say it outright"

"Mmhmmm" Piper mumbled, turning back to the TV. It was Alexs' snigger that made her look back to Nicky and saw her making exaggerated kissy faces at her, eye closed and lips pushed as far forward as she could. She then brought the back of her hand up to her lips to 'make out' with, making Alex laugh louder. She didn't see the smack that Piper landed on her coming.

"Jesus! Alright! Got it!" Nicky laughed, her hands up in surrender.

The rest of the film passed and Piper was sure by the soft laughter coming from Alex at random moments that Nicky was making some form of gesture or motion at her, but every time she looked to Nicky, she turned to her and smiled back, the picture of innocence.

As the credits rolled, Piper looked expectantly between the two women who looked back at her with some confusion.

"Now what?"

"What?"

"Well now what?" Alex frowned.

"What do you mean 'now what'?"

"Well you said that you had a routine. What now. What is it you do after the pizza and the coke and the film?" Nicky and Alex laughed.

"Don't tell me you're OCD? You need a list of things to be done and when to do them?" Nicky shook her head making clear 'you're crazy' eyes at her. Piper chose to turn to Alex and address someone who seemed slightly more sensible.

"Well what is it you do now?" she asked again. Alex let out a small chuckle.

"I don't know, whatever we want. Lazy days don't have an itinerary. Probably watch TV. Reruns of Oprah or something. Order Chinese later. Play cards. I don't know" she shrugged.

"Fuck" Nicky added, nonchalantly. Alex rolled her eyes.

"Fuck is not on the list"

"We should have a list. Fuck should be on it" Nicky winked, biting her up mock-seductively.

"And what would Lorna think about that?" Piper asked. Nicky looked at her, a gleam in her eye.

"Well she's very welcome to join. As are you, of course, newbie. I'm sure Vause here wouldn't mind" she nodded to Alex who had already let out a frustrated moan at her friends ridiculous behaviour and stood up from the sofa.

"Give it up, Nicky" she warned. Piper wasn't sure exactly what Alex's tone meant, whether she was joking or not. Nicky, however, either thought that she was or chose to treat her like she was. She called out to Alex who was now making her way over to the kitchen.

"I thought it was you who was planning to give it up" she laughed at her own joke and Piper gave her a smile, unsure as to if she should follow Alex over to the kitchen or stay on the sofa with Nicky.

"She's a bit moody at the moment" Nicky shrugged in explanation. Piper thought that maybe she had been right in assuming the comments hadn't gone down too well after all.

"Any reason why?" Piper asked, suddenly curious.

"Eh" Nicky shrugged. "She owes a shit tonne of money to someone. I think she's a bit worried about it"

"From the club?" Nicky nodded. "I thought that it was doing well?" Piper was curious. The place always seemed to have a good number of punters in there. How could Alex be worried? She must be bringing in a fair amount of money each night.

"It's doing okay. But Vause likes to be in complete control and she's not at the moment. Her old boss is holding a bit of a grudge." Nicky paused, a frown tugging at her face. "I probably shouldn't be telling you this" she took a swig of the coke, trying to decide if she should go on. Shrugging slightly, continued.

"The Litch was doing good and when her old king pin caught wind of it, he upped the amount he wanted from her. It's all a bit shit at the moment" Pipers eyes had gone wide as she tried to decide if Nicky meant what she thought she did. She hesitated.

"King pin?" Nicky gave a noncommittal 'mmm' and dropped the empty coke bottle onto the floor by her side.

"Yeah. Really probably should let Vause tell you the rest if she wants to. Not really my place to say" Piper nodded with understanding.

"Of course. Of course. It's her business" But in her head, Pipers mind was working a mile a minute. Was her new job secure if Alex wasn't doing too well? Surely the new girl would be the first to go, especially considering how close the rest of the people who worked there seemed to be. She'd have to make herself indispensable to ensure that if and when Alex cut back, she was the one kicked out the door. And then there was the king pin thing…It might have been a peculiar choice of words from Nicky – she had a habit of saying pretty odd things – but then again, Piper hadn't really heard the term in relation to anything other than drugs before? Was Alex mixed up in a world much darker than that of burlesque? Piper wasn't sure. At this stage, she would put nothing past the woman who seemed to breathe mystery. It wouldn't surprise her if her new employer was part of that all but the question that Piper found herself asking herself was; would it really make a difference? Say Alex _did_ have something to do with illegal, illicit affairs. Would Piper cut her losses and say goodbye? Walk away from Litchfield, the dancing, the music, Nicky, Alex?

She didn't think she could now, even if she tried.

She didn't think she wanted to.

"You like working there though?" Nicky asked, curling her feet up underneath her. Piper could feel her face light up and was sure that Nicky would know her answer before she said it.

"I love it. I've never worked anywhere like it. I've never even _been_ anywhere like it" Nicky laughed, her lips pulling up at the side in her jaunty smirk.

"Yeah, that was the plan"

"So what actually do you do there?" Piper asked "I mean, I know you dance and everything but it seems like you're more involved. Do you own part of it or…?" The snort of laughter was a clear no.

"You're kidding, right?" she shook her head, apparently thinking about the absurdity of her owning any form of business. "Nah, Vause is the only bitch in charge of that place. I'm kind of her unofficial deputy bitch though. We've known each other a long time-"

"Far too fucking long if you ask me" Alex interrupted. Piper turned to see her walking back in the room with her hands wrapped around three mugs of coffee. Placing them down on the coffee table, she cursed as she spilt a little but decided not to wipe it up, instead slumping down on the sofa next to Piper and draping her arm along the back of the sofa.

"She's right. Ten years with this one," she nodded to Alex "makes any sane person think they've sinned pretty damn badly in a past life"

"Good thing you're not sane" Piper quipped, an eyebrow raised, the grin on her face growing slightly as she heard the burst of laughter coming from Alex.

"Hardy ha, newbie. Anyhoo, she runs all her decisions and shit past me, don't you Vause. Uses me as a judge of character when doing the hirin' and firin'. You know, because I have an impeccable douch-dar".

"Not to mention you've slept with half the women in America so you know if they're trustworthy" Nicky shrugged, accepting the jibe.

"And you've got the other half covered so we're all good" Nicky winked. Piper looked between the two women. She didn't doubt for a second that they could get any girls that they wanted to, but there were so many jokes made about their prowess, she was beginning to wonder if there was any truth behind them.

"Are you two _really_ such womanisers? Different woman every day of the week kinda thing?" Piper asked, curiosity getting the best of her. She was given two different answers at the same time.

"Nah"

"Fuck yeah" Alex sighed.

"I thought a lady never kissed and told, Nichols?" Alex asked and Nicky made a show of looking between Piper and Alex.

"I see no ladies here" Alex and Piper exchanged a look and Alex nodded, not having to tell Piper what was on her mind. As Piper reached out and smacked Nicky around the shoulder on the pairs behalf, Nicky let out a loud _hey!_ and sent two cushions flying towards each of the womens faces.

-x-

"Laters, Chapman!" Nicky called from the sofa as Piper slipped her jacket on over her pyjamas. She was thrown a nonchalant wave before the womans attention was turned back to her phone. Nicky had received a message a while before Piper had decided it was time to make a move and she'd pretty much checked out of the conversation ever since. It didn't take a genius to figure out who it was that Nicky was tapping away at her phone to. Piper and Alex had exchanged a look, rolled their eyes, tried to include Nicky in the conversation and had then moved to the kitchen not long after, leaving Nicky to her secret smiles and girlish giggles. It was quite sickening, really. The two had chatted idly over a couple more mugs of coffee for a while and stood out on the small balcony as Alex sucked on a cigarette before Piper realised that it was beginning to get dark and she really should be getting back home. Alex had offered to call her a cab, but Piper had insisted on walking home. It was a reasonably mild night and her place was only a couple of blocks away, after all. Stood at the door with her, Alex smiled.

"Let me know when you get home okay" Piper laughed.

"Why, because you're worried that I might get abducted on the way home" Alex gave an over-the-top shrug.

"Hey, who am I to say it won't happen. These are big, scary streets and it _is_ getting dark". Piper rolled her eyes.

"Alright, I'll let you know when I've made the 20 minute journey and have arrived home safely"

"Just to put my mind at ease?" Alex gasped, a hand in front of her mouth and her eyes wide, playing the fool. Piper nodded.

"Just to put your mind at ease" Her hands now clasped together held up by her face, Alex put on a thick southern accent.

"Oh you're too good to me"

"I'm out" Piper could see where this was probably going. Turning, she began to walk down the hallway, throwing a wave over her shoulder and shaking her head at Alex who was still stood in the doorway.

"Whad'll eh do without sucha khind, _khind_ woman bah ma side?"

"Whatever"

"You're such a peach! Ain't no man treat me lhake yho dho" As Piper got in the elevator, she could hear Alex laughing to herself and Nicky telling her to 'close the door, you fucking dork'.

On the way out the door of the building, Piper fumbled in her bag for her headphones and her phone. Choosing a song, she buried her hands in her pockets, she began to make her way home. Monday evening wasn't particularly busy but she passed a couple of guys on their way home from work and group of young women, probably students, clearly out for some form of party.

As she passed Litchfield, she smiled to herself. The place sat quiet and it was the first time that Piper had seen it without any form of life. Looking at it now, it looked like an inconspicuous little bar, somewhere with potential that would be nice to visit. The kind of place one would chance upon and share a nice drink with friends, but without the lights, the music coming from inside, there wasn't quite the allure that had drawn Piper into the little world that sat deep beneath the streets of LA.

A small smile came to Pipers lips as she passed the building, but she soon passed it, leaving Litchfield to its night off. With her head down, she hummed the song playing in her ears quietly to herself. A couple of steps after she passed her work place, a hand landed heavily on her shoulder, jolting her out of her music and pulling a scream from her lips. Turning sharply, her arms already up in self-defence, it took a moment to process who was standing in front of her.

"Oh god, jeez, Pipes. I'm sorry! I didn't mean to-

"Fuck!" she yelled, cutting the man off. Her heart was pounding in her chest and she clutched a hand to it, trying to calm the organ slamming against her ribcage. "Larry! What're you doing?!" Larry had his hands held up, palms facing her. His eyes were wide and he looked almost as terrified as Piper had been.

"I…I was just walking past and saw you. I didn't mean to scare you! Honestly, I'm so sorry. I should have thought…" Piper shook her head.

"No, it's okay" she let out a deep breath that had built up inside her lungs. "I had headphones in, I was in a world of my own. I just wasn't expecting anyone to jump out at me"

"I didn't mean – "

"I know, Larry" Piper gave a nervous laugh, the adrenaline finally starting to leave her body. "It's fine." There was a moment as the pair looked each other up and down and they both frowned.

"Why aren't you wearing a jacket?" Piper asked. It was a mild night, sure, but it wasn't warm enough for the t-shirt that Larry was wearing. Or the sandles. Larry laughed and gestured to Piper.

"You can talk. Couldn't be bothered to get dressed today?" Piper looked down at herself and ran a hand through her hair, laughing quietly.

"Oh, god. I must look a state. I was banned from wearing anything but pyjamas today" she explained, dismissing the rest of the explanation with a wave of the back of her hand. Larry, however, clearly wasn't going to settle for just that.

"Banned?" he laughed "Who by? Where the devil have you been?"

"Oh, Alex and Nicky stayed behind drinking last night and they invited me over this morning but they have this thing where they only wear pyjamas on a Monday. I don't know. It's stupid" Piper expected Larry to laugh at the pairs ridiculous ritual and move on with the conversation but he wasn't quite willing to let the topic drop yet. The smile faded from his face a little and he cocked his head to one side.

"So you spent the day with Nicky and Alex?" he asked. Pipers brow creased and she shifted her weight to her other foot. Now that she wasn't moving, the cold was beginning to nip at her a little and she pulled her jacket around her a little closer. She was sure that Larry noticed the action but he ignored it, waiting for her to answer his question.

"Yeah..?" Larry paused.

"Oh"

"Is there…was there else?" she asked, starting to feel slightly uncomfortable at the clear disapproving look on Larrys face. "Because it's getting a bit chilly and I…" she trailed off, pointing in the direction of her home and indicating that she would rather get moving if she could.

"Oh! Oh god, sorry!" Larry seemed to focus on Piper again, not where she had spent her day "Can I…Can I walk you home?" Piper shook her head.

"Oh, don't worry about that. It's only around the corner" to be honest, she really wasn't in the mood for the forced conversation and the manners required when someone walked you home. Larry was nice enough, but she wanted to get home and crawl into bed with a book or a film, not have to hang around on the doorstep and invite him in.

"No, no, I insist" Piper paused, planning an excuse in her head but anything she said seemed to sound completely fake. Which, of course, it was.

"Great" she managed to muster some enthusiasm and she was pretty sure that Larry didn't see the smile drop from her face as she turned and began to walk by Larrys side.

"So you and the girls seem pretty close now" It wasn't a question and Piper wasn't entirely sure how to reply.

"Yeah, yeah" she nodded. There was a pause so she continued. "They're all really nice".

"But you and Nicky and Alex especially?"

"Well, yeah. I don't know. I mean, we had a really good time last night and they seem pretty chill, you know. They're nice girls"

"They're not" the speed at which his reply came really took Piper aback and she looked at him questioningly. Larry noticed the look and a look of regret passed quickly across his face but a moment later it was gone.

"What does that mean?" Piper heard the chill that had crept into her voice and she was sure that Larry had too. Clearly there was something amiss.

"It doesn't matter"

"No, tell me. If there's something I should know..." Larry looked like he was reluctant to go on but Piper was pretty sure that it was an act and he was actually pretty keen to tell her what it was that was on his mind.

"It's just that –" he took a breath. "Nicky and Alex. There's something about them. All the staff know it but they all seem to ignore it. Their thick as thieves and…they're in with some pretty bad people, Piper. I mean, sure. Don't get me wrong. They're nice girl. Well, they're _okay_ girls. But you really are a nice girl and… I just don't think that you should get too close to them. Don't get mixed up with their shit". Piper had her head down as they were walking, hey eyes firmly on her shoes as she listened to what Larry was telling her. His hand on her arm stopped her and when she looked up, he was pointing to the apartment building that they were outside. It was hers and she turned, leaning against the wall next to the doors, her eyes squinting with curiosity.

"Bad how, exactly?" She had her arms crossed over her chest and she was intrigued as to where this was going.

"Like, _bad" _

"Yeah, you're gonna need to explain that word a little more, Larry"

"Like, you know. Crime and drugs and that kinda thing. They're not like you and me, Piper. The people they know, their _friends_" he paused and Piper almost rolled her eyes at the dramatic effect he was trying to achieve "you need to stay away from them". Taking one of those breathes that means a conversation is drawing to a close, Piper pushed herself off the wall.

"Well, you know, they seem okay to me and until they do me wrong," she shrugged "who am I to judge them on hear-say?" Larry was clearly not pleased with the answer. "Thanks for the heads up though. I'll keep an eye out" She gave him one of her prettiest smiles and small wink and turned to walk into her building. "Thanks for walking me home though. It was really nice of you"

Larry seemed unsure of what to do. It was obvious that he had more to say on the Nicky/Alex front but the clear stop Piper had put to the conversation wasn't allowing him to do so.

"Er, yeah. Sure. Anytime" he stuttered.

"See you tomorrow!" Piper gave him a cheery wave and unlocked the door to her building, dodging the kiss that Larry aimed at her cheek. As the door closed behind her, Larry stood looking at it for a moment more.

"Yeah" he said quietly into the night. "See you tomorrow". With that, he turned and slunk away into the darkness.

On her way up to her apartment, Piper mulled over his words. She was pretty sure that Larry was exaggerating. Somewhere along the way, these stories get twisted. These 'bad' people Nicky and Alex knew was probably a small time car thief whose story had evolved into him killing a couple of people and being a master imported. She laughed to herself quietly, the noise joining the sounds of her footsteps going up the stairs.

But then again, the voice at the back of her mind piped up, you _were_ thinking about this earlier tonight. Maybe there is something to it all.

She shook her head trying to clear the thoughts out. It was too late to be thinking about that kind of thing and she hadn't even got home yet. It was nice of Larry to walk her to her building though, to stop whatever it was that he was doing to make sure that she got home okay, even if she didn't really want him to. She laughed to herself as she imagined him not stopping her when they had arrived at her building. She hadn't a clue where they were and she probably would have just kept on walking. God, her head was always in the clouds, even when she was deep in conversation. It was a trait that had got her in quite a bit of trouble before, zoning out of conversations because she was caught up in her own thoughts or imagination. But they had arrived in the end and he'd brought her safely to her door. Taking her phone out, she began to write out the promised message to Alex that she had got home safe.

_**No need to panic, I'm home safe and sound. I saw Larry just outside the Litch and he walked me home. Sleep well : ) x **_

A frown line appeared between Pipers brows.

Yeah, Larry had walked her home. And she'd got home safely. And he'd stopped her when they had arrived.

But thinking about it now, she was pretty sure she had never told him where she lived.

-x-

_Sorry about the lack of updates as of late, guys! I hope you enjoyed this one, though! _

_Thanks to all those who have fav'ed, followed and especially to those who have reviewed. __**Calibuckeyegirl, cmc49abc, izzielg, Lianna-snow, SemiAdorable, Basic, PheonixTears89, ToTheBarricades, raquellu47, Cory101rockon, lj, emilyjasmine **__and the __**2 guests**_ _who took the time to review, you're absolute gems. Thank you so much. _

_X _


	6. Seeing Red

Hands buried deep in her pockets and high heels tucked away in her bag, Piper made her way towards Litchfield. The streets were crowded and she tried her best not to get frustrated at the endless number of people bumping into her or knocking her bag so it fell of her shoulder. It was that time of day when half the people were coming home, dinner and television on their mind. The other half were going somewhere, going to share a bottle of wine with friends, meeting dates at restaurants, making their way to evening jobs. Piper was clearly of the latter, hair curled at the ends, smoky eyes and a short black dress which, if she were honest, she wasn't entirely sure about. She'd ask Alex if it was okay later but for now it would have to do. And besides, she was pretty sure that she would be hard pushed to wear something deemed 'inappropriate' at Litchfield.

Her stomach growled slightly and she wondered if the girls would be going out for pizza after the show tonight. She hadn't been due to go to work for another hour or so, but Alex had text her and asked if she would be able to come in a bit earlier and help with the bar delivery. Of course she'd said yes and so here she found herself in the early evening foot traffic. It wasn't long before the now familiar building was coming into view and she was skipping down the stairs. Inside, there was soft background music playing but there wasn't the noise that usually filled the bar – no yells of 'where's my liner?!' from backstage or laughter from Taystee. As far as Piper could tell, Larry was the only one here, quietly polishing some glasses behind the bar but she didn't doubt for a second that she would find Alex bent over some paperwork if she were to venture into her office.

"Hey!" Larry greeted her with a smile which Piper returned.

"Hey. So what're we doing here exactly?" she asked, slipping her bag off her shoulder and making her way behind the bar. Larry shrugged and threw a cloth at her.

"Red'll be here soon. She drops off all the drinks and we need to stock up the bar. It doesn't usually take too long if there's a couple of us here"

"Shouldn't that kind of thing be done, I don't know, anytime other than just before we open for the night?" Larry laughed and nodded.

"You would have thought, wouldn't you. Nah, Red is running late today and Trish usually helps but she's called in sick. We just need to wait for Red to actually get here". The pair busied themselves with tidying up the bar and making sure that all the glasses shined like diamonds. A comfortable silence came over them as they listened to the music, much to Pipers surprise. Last night had been playing on her mind all through the morning and she had come to the conclusion that she had definitely not, at any point, told Larry where she lived. She was sure that there must be some innocent explanation for it, but it had disturbed her and so the easy atmosphere that wrapped around them now was something she hadn't really been expecting.

"Pipes… about last night"

Fuck. He had to fucking ruin it. She immediately felt herself tensing but tried to keep not to let it show as she moved behind him to pick up another glass.

"What about it?"

"I know you and Alex are close. I shouldn't have warned you off of her" his lips tugged up at the corner in a regretful smile and Piper felt herself breathe a little easier. She was sure that he was going to spend this time to elaborate on his warning but if he wasn't going to then maybe this wouldn't be so ba-

"but I thought that you really needed to know. You're a really nice girl, Piper, and you don't belong in with that kind of crowd". Piper could instantly feel her blood begin to boil. All her life she had been told which girls she should be hanging around with, which boys she should be dating, which clubs she should be a part of. She was blonde. She was tall and slim and pretty. She had the WASP thing down. She came from a family that had money. She was_ not_ a fucking clique and she was not an open book. She did not need someone – someone _else –_ telling her the friendship circle she 'belonged' in. Fuck, _no. _

"And what crowd, may I ask, do I belong in, Larry?" Had Larry know her better, he would have been able to see the tension in her shoulders and hear the dangerous edge to her voice which said that Piper was one wrong answer away from losing her temper.

"Well, you know. The ones who aren't dodgy as fuck, Pipes". He may not have been able to tell the extent to which he was pissing Piper off, but he shifted uncomfortably, keeping his eyes firmly on the glass in his hands. Piper let out a sigh and then took another calming breathe which she quickly realised was not working.

"Larry" she said shortly, drawing his attention and causing him to look up at her. "You don't know me." She paused and he looked like he was about to speak but she cut him off with a wave of her hand. "You don't know me and I appreciate your concern that I might fall in with the big bad crowd, but I can handle myself. I can judge people off of the way that they treat me and the impression I get of them. If Alex or Nicky or any person in this place gives me a reason to be wary of them or think that I shouldn't be friends with them, then that's down to me. I don't need you taking me under your wing". She stood now, cloth in her hand which in turn was rested on her hip. He clearly hadn't expected anything but gratitude from Piper. She was pretty sure that he had envisioned this whole situation ending with Piper telling him she was so glad that he had warned her about those evil-do'ers and them becoming closer and closer. But no. "Now, if you have anything else about Alex that you think I should know, please do me a favour and keep it to yourself. She's your boss. Maybe you should give her a little respect" Piper fumed. Larry seemed to contemplate replying and then decided that he would, annoyance flashing in his eyes.

"I was just letting you know, Piper" he snapped. "Anyone else would be grateful to know that they're associating with fuck ups"

"Well I don't want to fucking well know, okay!"

"Fine"

"Fine!" Piper yelled, her breathing heavy, trying to ignore the glare that she was getting from Larry. The man remained silent. The woman was keeping him in a job, god knows why, and he was doing all he could to spread rumours about her and make her new staff cautious of her. It was unacceptable. Turning on her heels, Piper walked to the other side of the bar, her blood boiling. There was something about Larry that just pissed her off. He seemed like a perfectly nice guy but this whole vendetta he had against Nicky and Alex was ridiculous. She was trying to get on with her new life and she didn't need some weasel trying to act the hero. She could be her own fucking hero, thank you very much.

"Does anybody run this place anymore?" A Russian accent reached Pipers ears and she rowned at the unfamiliar voice. Larry, however, clearly knew exactly who it was, running over to a door and opening it for the fiery red haired woman that was coming through it.

"Sorry, Red. We didn't hear you"

"Didn't hear me, my arse" Red gave a friendly frown and then looked over to where Piper was stood. "And who is this?" she asked, nodding towards the blonde.

"Oh, this is Piper. She's the new girl" Larry said coldly. Red nodded and waited for Piper to say something. She didn't.

"Well, it's nice to know that this place is still like one big happy family" she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. Neither Larry nor Piper said anything and she rolled her eyes at the childish atmosphere that was filling the room. Piper looked the woman over. She seemed friendly enough, the kind of woman that you wouldn't want to get on the wrong side of, yes, but friendly. Any other time, she would have gone and introduced herself properly and made herself as useful as possible, but the anger within her was still coursing through her veins and so she remained behind the bar watching as Larry began to shift crates around.

"You can come and help me at the very least, new girl" The way she said 'new girl' was no insult, it was as if it was simply her name and Piper liked the sound of it coming from the women. There was no judgement or derogatory meaning behind the words, just a simple fact. Piper thought to herself that she would get on with this 'Red'. Making her way over, she followed Red out a back door and up some steps to the car park behind the club where her van waited.

"So you're settling in well then" Red asked, one eyebrow raised and a smirk on her face. It wasn't unkind and Piper heard a small puff of laughter coming from herself.

"Would you believe me if I said that I actually am?" Red chuckled quietly.

"We can't like all of the people all of the time" she shrugged. Her and Piper shared a small smile as they unloaded some more alcohol from the truck. "Larry is a tough one to get on with but I think you found that out yourself" Piper nodded and have another small smile.

"He's fine. We just had a bit of an argument". Red nodded in understanding.

"Well I'm sure you don't need me to tell you, but just watch out for that one". There was a sense of wisdom about Red and if Piper wasn't already slightly wary of Larry, the older woman's words would have made her. There was no judgement in her voice as there had been when Larry was speaking of Alex and Nicky, just fact. She was telling her something and letting her make form her own opinions.

"Hey, Ma! Not gonna even bother to say hello?" Nicky was walking out to the car park with a smile on her lips. Red turned to her and Piper could see her eyes light up.

"Ahh, Nicky. I was wondering when you were going to come running"

"I don't fucking run" Nicky scoffed. "I casually stroll from place to place". She walked over to Red, leant back far more than usual and exaggerated the swing of her arms to appear chill. Just before she reached Red, her act dropped and she laughed at the eye roll she received.

"Where were ya last week, ma?" she asked, giving Red a quick hug.

"I got held up" she said dismissively and Nicky nodded.

"Are you actually her mother?" Piper asked. Red laughed and shook her head.

"You think any daughter of mine would speak to anyone the way this one speaks to me?" she asked, knocking Nicky around the side of her head. Nicky frowned and then laughed lightly.

"More of a maternal figure" she explained. Piper nodded in understanding.

"And as your maternal figure, you can save my poor back and carry this down to the bar" Red kicked a crate of alcohol and pointed at it for Nicky to pick up. Nicky groaned and her shoulders slumped but she picked it up none-the-less and headed over to the stairs.

"_Little girl, Big hair_ I used to call that one" Red said conspiratorially, leaning over to Piper slightly. She then let out a bark of laughter. "More like _Little Girl, Big Mouth_ these days". Piper nodded in agreement and offered the Russian woman a smile.

"Try _Little girl, Not deaf_!" Nicky called from the top of the stairs, causing Red to throw her head back slightly. She then looked at Piper and shrugged in a very motherly what-can-you-do kind of way. Looking around, she seemed satisfied that all the alcohol was being taken care of. Taking a clipboard from the back of the van, she shoo'ed Piper into the building.

Back inside, there was definitely more life than there had been before. Some of the dancers had arrived and could clearly be heard getting ready for the evenings work behind the heavy curtain. The music had also been turned up slightly and there was more of the friendly vibe that Piper had come to associate with the place. Larry, however, still had a face like thunder as he stood fixing new bottles into the optics and slamming backup bottles onto the shelves.

"Hey, Bloom. Go easy won't you? Smash anything and it'll come out your wages" Nicky warned. She pulled a face to Piper, puzzled as to why the usually placid barman was trying to singlehandedly make more noise than Niagara Falls.

"Fuck off, Nicky" he snapped back. "You're not in charge here, despite what you think" Piper frowned at the man. He was being ridiculously childish and it was really grating on her. Red and Nicky had managed to calm her down a little but she could feel the annoyance creeping up inside her again at the sight of the full grown man throwing a tantrum.

"No, but she is right. Smash anything and you'll pay for it". Piper didn't need to look behind her to know that Alex had emerged from backstage. She did, however, see the smug look that Nicky threw to the bar and Larry who had turned away but Piper was sure she could hear some pissed off mumblings coming from him.

"Hey, Red. How are the boys?" Alex asked, not giving Larry another glance but instead making her way straight over to the Russian woman, pen already in her hand.

"Oh, you know" Red rolled her eyes but there was a smile on her lips at the mention of her sons "little shits". Alex gave a nod and a small laugh as she took the clipboard from her and signed her name with a flourish, not bothering to look over the order form.

"Give them my love". Red nodded her thanks.

"And here?" Alex nodded.

"Not too bad, you know. The new girl is doing well" she said, nodding towards Piper who would usually have smiled and said something along the lines of _the new girl is doing far too much work_ or some other feeble attempt at a joke, but the anger bubbling in her meant that she simply glanced up at the mention of herself and then focused again on her work. Red gave Alex a small smirk and raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah, she's a cheery one" Red turned to leave and Alex shot Piper a puzzled look wondering what it was exactly that had brought on this silent act.

"I must be going" Red said with a sigh. "Demitri can't be left alone for more than an hour or he'll have the police knocking at our door". Alex laughed and gave Red a friendly pat on the back, walking her to the door.

"See you around, Red. Thanks for the delivery"

"There's a little something for Nicky in the box with an X on it" Red told her, her voice lowered.

"Thanks, Ma!" Nicky yelled from where she stood talking to Lorna by the stage. As Red left, Alex walked over to the bar and slipped onto one of the barstools, watching her as she neatly stacked bottles of Jack Daniels onto a shelf. Fully aware of the eyes digging a hole in her back, she waited for Alex to say something. When she didn't, she glanced over her shoulder and gave Alex a questioning look. Alex simply raised on well-plucked eyebrow and shot a questioning look straight back.

"What?" Piper asked, immediately regretting her short tone of voice. Alex gave a small huff of laughter.

"What me? What _you_ more like. What's up with you, face ache?" she asked. Piper just shook her head and turned back to her work, not wanting to talk about it. She could see that Larry was looking over, listening in on the conversation and she didn't want to give him the satisfaction of hearing anything.

"What, nothing to say?" Alex asked, amusement in her voice. "No long drawn out story about someone that's done you wrong?" When her question still got no reply, Alex sighed. "You're gonna have to talk to me at some point" she said, the laughter leaving her voice. In the mirror that stood behind the glass shelf she was stacking bottles onto, Piper could see Alex frowning slightly. She was clearly beginning to find Pipers silence and bad attitude less humorous and more irritating, but still Piper didn't answer.

"Piper!"

"What?!" Piper immediately snapped back. Alex looked at her in shock for a moment and her eyes flashed. Piper wasn't sure what was going to happen but she was pretty sure that shouting at her boss wasn't going to go down very well.

"Right," Alex said firmly "My office".

When Piper was younger, she had been taught to fear the words _my office". _In school, she had been brought to the principal once and her heart had pounded in her chest. She'd cried for the rest of the day. At home, she had been told to go to her father's office once and it had resulted in her heart sinking and her world changing. _Come to my office. Your mother and I have something to tell you _he had said. It was a place reserved for severe words and bad news. So the thought of being demanded to come to Alex's office with her didn't exactly fill Piper with joy.

Following Alex behind the curtain, Piper could tell that show time was creeping closer. Nearly all the girls were backstage applying makeup and getting changed into similar black sequined dresses. Flaca and Maritza were both finishing off another glass of water and throwing some tablets down their throats, their faces grim.

"I don't even think I can do this shit tonight" Maritza moaned and Flaca nodded in agreement.

"I like, can't even move" she grumbled holding a hand to her forehead. As Alex and Piper passed, Alex stopped and looked them both up and down with a frown on her face.

"If you two think you're going to skip work tonight because you got fucked, you can think again" she snapped before she turned and headed through the jumble of clothes again. Piper could see Flaca and Maritza exchange a confused look at their bosses annoyance and Piper gave an apologetic smile as they both shot her accusatory frowns.

"Vause!"

"Not now, Tucky" Alex snapped at the small woman who was now marching alongside her with her hands buried deep in the pockets of her hoodie.

"I really have a problem with some of the new dance," she continued. "All that griiiindin' on eachother. It ain't right. It ain't _proper" _Alex stopped in her tracks and spun around to face Pennsatucky.

"I don't give a shit what you think at this moment in time" Alex told her. "You got a problem, you know where the door is" Without waiting for a response, Alex made her way up the spiral staircase to her office and Piper slipped past Pennsatucky and followed her through the door which smelly so distinctly of Alex. The woman went immediately to her desk and sat leant back in her chair, fingers steepled.

"Right, are you going to explain to me exactly why you're in such a bad mood?" Alex asked. Piper sighed and waved a hand.

"It's nothing"

"Nothing which is putting my bar staff into a childish game of _who can throw a bigger silent tantrum_ so you can tell me what it is right now". Piper had a feeling that Alex didn't pull rank very often but she supposed having her two main members of floor staff mad at each other would probably have a bit of a negative effect on business.

"Larry just…" Piper trailed off.

"Larry what?" Alex persisted.

"Larry just pissed me off. He was trying to tell me what to do and it got to me" Alex laughed quietly at the ridiculousness of it.

"Well I hate to say this Piper, Larry may not have been invited to hangover Mondays, but he is, in a way, your boss. He _can_ tell you what to do" Piper shook her head.

"No, I don't mean –" she gave a sigh of frustration. "He was telling me that I shouldn't be friends with you and Nicky" she said, her arms crossed over her chest. Alex looked at her, a frown line between her brows.

"Not to be 'friends' with us?" she let out a snort of laughter. "What are we, bad children?" There was another small chuckle from the brunette, but Piper wasn't laughing. She shifted her weight from one foot to another.

"He told me that you both are into some pretty bad shit and because I'm such a _nice girl_ I should stay away from you" Piper rolled her eyes and shuffled slightly in her place. Alex knocked her head to one side briefly.

"He's probably right" she said with a smouldering half smile.

"Alex, be serious" Alex sighed, stood up, walked to the other side of her desk and perched on the edge of it right in front of Piper.

"Fine. Fine. Yeah, he's right. I know some bad people. Yeah, I know some people who you probably wouldn't want to invite round for Sunday dinner with your parents. But who doesn't"

"He said you know dealers" Piper fired back quickly. "And importers and kingpins and _really_ bad people".

"You well Larry Bloom doesn't know everything about me and it sounds like he needs to mind his own business" Piper saw her eyes narrow and she couldn't help but agree.

"I told him that it was nothing to do with him and I could make my own decisions"

"Good"

"He seems pretty sure that I'm too much of a nice girl to be hanging around with people who are going to have such a bad influence on me, though" Piper said with a smirk.

"Oh, I do hope so" Alex winked. The two women looked at each other for a moment before they both started laughing.

"So if you could try and avoid gouging his eyes out or stabbing him with a cork screw tonight, that would be great. Leave the little worm to it and just ignore him" Piper nodded and gave her a little mock salute.

"I'll try my very best"

"And would I be proving him right and acting like a bad person if I were to say how fucking good you look in that dress?" Alex asked, racking her eyes up and down Pipers body and shaking her head slightly with appreciation at the shortness of her dress.

"Most definitely" Piper said, trying to hide the intense blush that she could feel come over her face. Alex paused for a moment, finishing her thorough evaluation of the woman in front of her.

"Good" Alex said with a smirk, touching her glasses. "Best be on your way, Chapman. Don't want anyone to think I'm corrupting you" Piper nodded and gave Alex a wide smile, shutting the office door softly behind her.

_Jesus Christ,_ she thought to herself as she descended the stairs. _I think you may already have. _

-x-

_I know I say it at the end of every chapter, but I really am overwhelmed with the lovely response this fic has gotten! I'm glad you all seemed to have enjoyed the last chapter and I hope you enjoyed this one just as much. _

_Once again, huge thanks to all those who have fav'ed, followed and review (__**Sasha, ToTheBarricades, izzielg, cmc4abc, tayschillings, Christi06, , lj, raquellu47, ohmcsexy **__and the__** guest, **__extra big hugs and smooches to you). _

_Until next time! _

_x_


	7. The Man at the Bar

The next evening, Piper and Larry both seemed to realise that they were both adults and needed act accordingly. Piper fills the ice bucket when he has no time and Larry keeps his comments to himself. They slip past each other with small smiles and shared eye rolls at irrational customers. There is a constant tension between them – Larry bites his tongue and Piper pretends not to notice the shadow of his warning each time she feels him watching as she speaks to Alex – but time passes and the tension begins to feel normal. They are civil and they are cautious friends and the bar becomes a smoothly working mechanism once more.

Two weeks pass in a blur of poured alcohol and cymbal crashes and if her life were a movie there would be a montage and for a while it would be a good one. There is laughter and there is liquor and shot glasses slammed on tables. There are more evenings of drinking and more mornings of dancing and more days with pizza and there is routine to Pipers life for the first time in so long. She thrives on it. Her days are broken into sections and she's not sure which she likes best.

There is the day spent shopping or sipping coffee. They're relaxed, easy going. And sometimes there is someone dragging her to unknown record shops and sometimes there is someone browsing second-hand bookshops with her and sometimes there is no one but the nameless faces passing her by but they are hers and they are precious.

There are the hours at work where she turns a blind eye to the fact Daya is growing bigger by the day and she sways her hips for customers and she watches the girls on stage and, _god_ does she want to be up there. She watches, she learns and she practices. She brings the girl their drinks backstage and day by day they accept her more. Sophia brings her unused garments that she thinks will suit her, Boo plays a song she likes during the interval and Taystee makes sure she makes an extra margarita when she thinks Alex isn't watching.

Then there is after. After the girls have piled out the doors and the glitter has settled backstage and all but four chairs have been turned upside down onto the tables. It's at this time Alex, Nicky and Piper sit down and share a drink. Sometimes they drink too much and sometimes it's just a social drink between friends. Sometimes it's a bottle of wine, sometimes it's a single vodka. More and more, the forth chair has been filled by one Lorna Morello. She sits beside Nicky and pretends to be immune to the womans outrageous comments and brazen flirting. She talks about Christopher and Piper wonders if she can see the flash of pain in Nickys eyes at the mention of his name. She wonders if Nicky hates the feeling of caring. She thinks she does.

Increasingly, Piper thinks that her favourite part of the day is when the easy conversation splits. When Nicky and Lorna fall into their own conversation riddled with in jokes and suggestive comments. It's here that Piper turns to Alex and sees those framed eyes staring back at her, the corner of her lips turned up and an eyebrow raised. It's now they take another sip of their drinks and they talk about the day or they talk about a film or they talk as the night passes them by. It never fails to amaze Piper how quickly time passes when she is talking to Alex and soon she is aware that maybe Nicky and Lorna turn towards each other because of _their_ inside jokes, _their_ suggestive comments. The thought makes her smile. Piper is drawn to Alex and it all feels so natural. It's like she's known the woman for far longer than the few weeks since she reluctantly handed over her ten dollars.

And sometimes, Nicky will yawn and Lorna will check her phone and they'll both wave their goodbyes and Nicky will walk Lorna home and Alex will pour another drink which Piper will drink thankfully. But soon her eyes will begin to burn and she'll supress a yawn and Alex will insist on walking Piper home. _Fuck off if you think I'll let Nichols walk Morello home and then send you on your way without a chaperone. _And they'll walk through the streets and welcome the chill of the night. One time, the vodkas had gone straight to Pipers head and she had practically skipped home, revelling in the laughter trailing behind her. Swinging around a tree to face Alex, she had nearly knocked the older woman over and the pair had collapsed into fits of giggles. Piper hadn't been sure if it was the alcohol or that giggle, the hour or just the damn moment, but right there and then, Piper Chapman had decided that this was it. This right here.

This was her favourite part of the day.

-x-

Three weeks pass and a tall man with dark eyes pays his entrance fee. He sits nursing a drink at the end of the bar, buried in the shadows and he watches with - what is that? Fascination? – as Alex appears and sings her opening song. He sits forward in his chair, one elbow on the bar and his head rested in his palm and there is something about the smirk on his face that Piper doesn't like. Black Cindy says he gives her the creeps and she shakes off a shiver. Taystee eyes him suspiciously but the man remains faultlessly polite, a perfect gentleman in fact. Pipers alarm bells ring loud.

But the start of the show brings with it work and Piper must forget the man, instead focusing her attention on making sure everyone had their drinks and a good time was being had by all. It wasn't until the number drew to a close and Piper was smiling up at Alex as she held the last pose that she noticed the woman's grin drop. Her eyes had slid past Piper and, following her gaze, she saw the man wiggle his fingers at Alex, his lips drawn up into a smile that, on paper, would have been oh so pleasant. But here, in front of her, there was a sinister edge to it and by the frozen face of Alex, she wasn't the only one to think so.

Alex didn't appear on stage again that night.

The next evening, another tall, unfriendly looking man appeared. Piper eyed him cautiously until Alex introduced him as George Mendez; security. He became a permanent fixture at the bar and Piper felt her skin crawl whenever he would ask her for a drink in a way that really wasn't a question. She'd shudder when she could feel his small eyes on her as she walked between the tables and she'd laugh with Black Cindy and Taystee when they whispered a quiet _fuck you, Pornstache_ when he was out of earshot. But she knew that Alex had her reasons for the man's presence and although she refused to discuss them, Piper was pretty sure she knew exactly what they were.

Tricia's birthday is on a Friday and the evening's crowd are particularly rowdy. Many of them know the young waitress with her distinctive tattoo and she goes between tables with her crooked smile wide. Nearly every round is ordered with a _and one for the birthday girl_ tagged on the end and by the end of the night, there are enough drinks paid for Tricia for her to buy quite a few rounds, not that Alex would have made anyone pay for drinks tonight, anyway. The show winds up with Alex dragging Tricia on stage and leading a chorus of happy birthday which makes the young girl burn bright red and shift her weight from foot to foot, but she gives the crowd a grateful wave and a playful little bow that starts a round of cheers and applause for the birthday girl.

After the crowds have filed out the door, the cleaning up is done in a hurry and the girls are all gathered around the bar. Taystee and Black Cindy present her with a cake which was barely edible but hell, they had tried. Daya, Flaca and Maritza offer up a far more appetising cake which friend of the family and Litchfield accountant, Gloria Mendoza, had baked. Poussey handed over a couple of bottles of homemade hooch which Piper was pretty sure was illegal but caused a loud cheer to come the girls. Apparently it was well known that Poussey was a keen hooch-maker in her spare time, learning the recipe from an ex-prisoner that she had met in Germany. Later, when Piper questioned Alex about the safety of such a drink, she simply shrugged and took another sip. _Well,_ Piper thought. _When in Rome. _

Who knew homemade alcohol could be so damn drinkable.

They had all decided that yes, they had work tomorrow but fuck it, it was a special occasion. They were all going to get shit faced. A couple of hours later and the hooch was a distant, blurry memory that had been washed away with whiskey and a good helping of vodka. Piper had long since lost her heels, swapping them for her flat shoes and Boo had turned up the music so the girls could dance. Lorna seemed to be particularly intoxicated, wrapping a piece of Nickys hair around her finger and marvelling at just how much of a _mess _it was. (_But really, Nichols. Don't you own a brush?) _Piper laughed to herself as she saw Poussey and Taystee dancing together, smiles plastered over both girls faces and Pennsatucky glowering in a corner at the 'inappropriate' dancing. She was never really sure what 'Tucky was doing in a place like Litchfield but for all her objections to the moral reprehension of the place, she was a damn good dancer and the customers seemed to enjoy her. When she got on stage, she lit up and she brought in the money. She supposed Alex was able to put up with her as long as she kept up her part of the deal.

Speaking of Alex…

Looking around, the woman was nowhere to be seen. Usually the life and soul once there was alcohol around, Piper frowned and made her way up the stairs to the car park where the small smoking area was. She couldn't imagine Alex cooped up in her office bent over paperwork on a night like tonight. Pushing open the fire door, Piper felt a small smile pass over her lips as her suspicions were confirmed. Alex didn't react to the door open and Piper, swaying ever so slightly on her feet as the fresh air hit her, watched for a moment as a stream of smoke curled from her lips.

"Don't be a stranger" Alex said into the night, finally turning and acknowledging Piper. She gave a small smile shifted over slightly on the bench, making room for Piper, her eyes fixed on the drink held in the hand that wasn't holding a cigarette between its fingers.

"How come you're out here?" she asked, sitting beside her boss with her fingers tucked underneath her thighs. Alex shrugged.

"Needed some fresh air"

"And smoking provided it?" Alex looked at her sideways and the rolled her eyes at the womans smug expression.

"Piss off" There was silence for a moment as Alex took another drag of her cigarette then offered it to Piper who looked at it blankly for a second and then took a drag. She was sure she was going to get away with it. She was _sure_ she was going to –

Alex laughed as Piper coughed loudly, her eyes watering slightly as she tried to hold the coughs down.

"Not a smoker I take it" Piper shook her head, handing the cigarette back to Alex with a frown. "Then why did you accept it?" Alex asked, an amused expression on her face.

"Wanted to try some of that fresh air you were on about". Alex studied her, her eyes flitting over the blondes face.

"You're a smarmy bitch, you know that?" she said, putting the cigarette between her lips once more. Piper laughed softly and nodded.

"So why are you out here?" Piper tried again. Alex exhaled, mulling over her answer.

"I just wanted to get away from everyone for a bit, I guess" she shrugged, throwing the cigarette butt to the floor and grinding it with her foot.

"Do you want me to leave you?" Piper asked, suddenly conscious that maybe she wasn't wanted there. Alex quickly waved a hand in dismissal at her words and shook her head.

"You know you're always welcome" she winked, knocking her arm against Pipers who gently nudged her back.

"Good to know"

"As long as you're not talking shit" Alex added, earning herself a slap on the shoulder.

"So you're not really feeling the birthday celebrations tonight?" Piper asked. In response, Alex simply held up her drink in a toast and took a gulp. Piper took a sip of hers in reply and then looked at Alex, clearly still expecting an answer. Alex sighed.

"To be honest, I've just been really fucking stressed lately" she said, running a hand through her hair. "I'd rather be at home with takeout and a musical or something" Pipers eyebrows raised in surprise.

"I never had you down as a musical kinda of girl"

"I like the depressing ones, ya know. Rent. West Side Story" Piper laughed.

"Don't tell Lorna" Alex let out a huff of laughter.

"What do you think got us talking in the first place?" The two women took another mouthful of their drinks.

"What kind of takeout?" Piper asked suddenly. Alex looked at her questioningly. "Seriously. What kind of takeout?" Alex thought about it, shaking her head slightly.

"I don't know. Like, Chinese? Pizza?"

"Thai?"

"Thai. I don't know, whatever is quick and full of calories and keeps me company" Alex sighed and Piper could see she desperately didn't want to be here. Alex loved a party, they all knew that, but there came a time that everyone wanted to hang up their shot glass and crawl into bed.

"Well I know a particularly good Thai place. I may not be full of calories, but I _can_ keep you company" Piper said. Alex looked at her, trying to figure out if she was serious.

"Yeah?" Piper nodded.

"Yup" she said, popping the 'p'. "If you want me to, of course" Alex contemplated it for a moment, unaware of the increase in Pipers heartbeat as she realised that maybe Alex didn't want her there. Maybe she just wanted to go home alone and slob out. She wouldn't blame her.

"Sure" Alex shrugged. "But I'm paying. You got the pizza last time" Piper held her palms up in surrender.

"Fine, but I'm getting a bottle of wine" she said, pointing her finger into Alex's face. The brunette laughed.

"Don't you think you've had enough?" Piper frowned and shook her head.

"Pffft. Nowhere near. Come on. I'll tell Nicky she needs to close up"

"That'll go down well" Alex stood up from the bench and looked over her shoulder to Piper who had a palm against the wall, her head spinning ever so slightly as she stood up too quickly – or was it the hooch rushing through her veins? Who knew.

"Won't go down as well as Nicky does" Piper smirked. Alex threw her head back and laughed loudly causing Piper to smile widely.

"You're disgusting, Chapman" she said with a shake of her head.

"You fucking love it, Vause" Piper threw back. Alex threw a wink over her shoulder, nodded and raised an eyebrow suggestively.

"That I do"

-x-

-x-

-x-

_A quick, fluffy update for you all! I loved writing the little Vauseman scenes in this one. I'm really excited about where this story is going! _

_Thanks for reading, guys! Any thoughts would be really appreciated! I'd love to know what you all thought of this chapter, if you have a moment!_

_X _


	8. Seasons of Love

'Jesus, Pipes. Are you trying to wake up the entire building?' Alex asked, frowning at Piper who had slammed the front door behind her as they had entered the apartment. Piper looked at her with wide eyes.

"Sorry. I didn't mean to" she apologised. Alex thought she sounded very much like a petulant child. Her cheery mood had dropped slightly since they had left Litchfield. Alex had insisted they walk the three blocks and not get a cab (_But I don't __**wanna, **__Alex. I can't walk anymoo-oore) _and then the brat behind the counter at the liquor store had asked her for identification. Alex had been unable to hide the small smile on her face as she had held up her license with a huff.

Alex moved over to the kitchen and put the wine bottles on the counter as Piper threw herself over the back of the sofa and stared at the ceiling, draping her feet over its arm and kicking them lazily.

"I've ordered" she said simply. Alex looked over, a small line between her brows.

"What?"

"I've ordered the food. It'll be here in 20" Piper dropped her head off the side of the sofa and gave Alex an upside down smile.

"Oh, yeah? And how do you know the address?"

"Google maps

"And how do you know what I wanted?"

"I ordered you what I thought you'd like" Pipers grin grew a little bigger. Alex smirked at her, arms crossed over her chest. Moving over to the sofa, she put a bottle of wine of the table and then handed a glass to Piper. She then picked Pipers feet up and sat down, replacing the feet and leaning her arms on the woman's shins, ignoring her little gasp as her elbow dug into the bone.

"And how, may I ask, do you know that I will like it?" Piper bit her lip slightly, a smug expression on her face mixed with the smile of a pleased child.

"Because I ordered you my favourite". Alex laughed and rolled her eyes. To be honest, there was very little that she didn't eat and Piper would be hard pushed to find something that she didn't enjoy. Then again, if anyone could do it, it would probably be Piper.

"Aren't you going to have a drink?" Piper asked, sipping from her wine glass and spilling a little down herself because of her reluctance to actually sit up whilst she drank. Alex shook her head.

"Not at the moment. I'm thinking about giving up alcohol" Alex shrugged. Piper stared at her for a moment and their eyes met in the silence. For a couple of seconds, they just looked at each other blankly until Piper tipped her head incredulously to one side.

"Bullshit" Alex laughed loudly and shrugged.

"Yeah, you're right. I just don't feel like it"

"Well don't think that's going to stop you holding up your end of the bargain" Piper said pointedly. At Alex's clearly blank look, she let out an exaggerated sigh. "I was promised a musical". Alex's lips formed an 'o' and she nodded.

"You were. How about Rent?" Piper shrugged and sat up a little more to face the TV, still half draped over Alex.

"Yeah, whatever. I've never seen it". By Alex's face, the casual tone she had used was incredibly insulting. Pipers eyes flicked to the left and then back to Alex, questioning what she had said that was so shocking.

"You've never seen Rent? What kind of bullshit hippie student were you? And you call yourself cultured" Alex mumbled to her as she set up Netflix and began to search for the film. Piper frowned slightly and mulled over the words.

"Well… you know, I don't think I've ever called myself 'cultured' as such – "

"Shut up and watch," Alex instructed "you can thank me late for bringing something truly incredible to your life"

-x-

It had taken a while. She'd enjoyed the opening number –

_In daylights, in sunsets, in midnights, in cups of coffee_

_In five hundred twenty five thousand six hundred minutes, _

_How do you measure a year in the life? _

- But Piper had certainly been dubious about what she was watching. She wasn't entirely sure when it was, but without realising it had happened, she had found herself immersed in the lives of the people on her screen, completely unaware of the deeper breathing of the woman by her side. It wasn't until she stood up and grabbed a bottle of wine from the kitchen did she notice that she had disturbed a sleeping Alex who snuffled and buried deeper into the sofa. She watched her for a moment, a small smile playing at her lips, and then carefully sat herself down beside her, trying not to disturb her too much.

Alex slept on as the musical continued to play and it wasn't until the credits were rolling that she finally opened her eyes, completely unsurprised that she had fallen asleep. She was shattered and the stress of the last couple of weeks was really taking its toll. Looking to Piper, she let out a laugh at the blondes face. She was looking straight back at her with wide eyes, a half empty bottle hugged tightly to her chest like a kid with a teddy after a nightmare.

"Angel" was all she said, sadness dripping through the single word. Alex laughed loudly, her voice thick with sleep.

"Yup"

"He was so lovely"

"He was"

"If that's not depressing, I don't know what is" Piper frowned, taking another swig straight from the bottle. She'd given up on glasses a long time ago, telling herself she was saving Alex the washing up and so it was actually quite an admirable thing to do. The dirty glass beside her reminded her she was lying to herself but hey, who really cares? Alex's scoff gained her Pipers attention and she watched Alex ran a hand through her dark hair.

"You wanna talk depressing? Take a look at the shit show that I am at the moment" she sighed. Piper frowned.

"What do you mean?" Alex looked up at her, her lips pulled in on one side. She sighed again and Piper could feel herself sobering ever so slightly, the mood in the room turning a little darker. Alex rolled her eyes at herself and gave a small half shrug.

"Doesn't matter" she said with a dismissive wave of her hand. But Piper wasn't going to be put off. Moving a little closer to her on the sofa, she tried to focus her vision on Alex.

"No. You can tell me, Al" she said gently in the hopes she could coax Alex into talking. Alex crossed her arms over herself and Piper was pretty sure that she would hear nothing more on the subject, but Alex surprised her by taking a deep breath and looking her in the eye.

"The club's in trouble, Piper. _I'm_ in trouble. _Fuck,"_ she breathed "I don't even know what I'm going to do"

"Is this something to do with what Larry was telling me?" Piper asked her quietly, unsure if she really wanted to know the answer. Alex let out a huff of laughter.

"Fuck Larry" Piper smiled in agreement.

"Yeah, fuck Larry" she nodded "….but is it?" Alex took a deep breath and then exhaled it loudly as she ran her hands over her face, rubbing her eyes.

"Yeah. Kubra wants the club and…I can't give it to him. It's everything to me. He wants to destroy it and I worked _so fucking_ hard for it" she growled. Piper held up a hand and stopped her, frowning in confusion.

"Wait, wait. Cobra? I don't know who that is"

"Kubra" Alex said impatiently. "I used to work for him. He runs an international drug ring," she noticed Pipers face drop and she gave a short, humourless laugh. "Thinking maybe Larry was right all along?"

"No" Piper shook her head and Alex couldn't explain the relief that the single word held for her. "Go on".

"I used to import. And god, I was really fucking good at it, ya know? I was working my way up and I totally could have made it to the top but…" she shook her head, the memory heavy in her eyes. "I met Nicky and we became really close. The drugs, the travelling, the chance of being taken down any day. None of it bothered her. She just stuck by me, partied by my side and told me to cheer the fuck up when it all got to me. She just kinda…came along for the ride and we developed this weird, messed up friendship that we have now. It's fucked up and I'm pretty sure everyone else thought that we were together but," she shrugged, a small smile on her face "we didn't really care, ya know. And then I came back to our hotel early one day – someone had told me a wrong time and, whatever – and I found her completely fucked, absolutely off her face, stumbling around the bedroom, barely even knew her own fucking name. She was slurring so badly I couldn't understand what she was saying. God, she was out of it". Piper felt her hand go out to rest on Alex's shoulder as she shook her head at the memory. It was clear it had really shaken Alex and Piper regretted making her tell the story. But Alex continued, her voice sad and bitter.

"She'd been using for months and I had been so into work that I hadn't even noticed. As long as she was next to me, pouring drinks out to mules and making the life look like a fucking dream, what could possibly be that wrong with her? She'd taken way too much. The nurses kept on coming out to tell me that she wasn't doing good but they were trying their best. I called Fahri, my boss, and told him I wanted out." Alex drew her attention away from her fingernails and looked Piper in the eye. Piper gave her a small reassuring smile.

"That's good. You're out" she said. Alex didn't return the smile.

"Yeah, and now Kubra wants me back. Or the club, at least. When I left, he was pissed. So I did whatever I could do to get him to let me go. I set up a shit tonne of huge drops, trained a load of new dealers so they knew exactly what they were doing and could replace me. I set him up as well I could and he… he just let me go" Alex gave a bitter smile. "I should have known. I should have fucking known. But I thought, you know, I'd done everything I could for him. I made that guy so much money I thought he might have made an exception for me. We were close before it all happened. I thought it would be okay"

"But now…?" Piper asked, perfectly aware that there was no _happy ever after_ attached to the story.

"I scraped together all the money I could to start the club and I knew he was keeping tabs on me. When I brought Litchfield, he made sure I knew that he'd be watching it and seeing how it did._ Just in case _he said. And now he wants to come in and use it. It's the perfect place. It's a successful business with endless customers. He can keep an eye on it and bring in some new business, attract all sorts of customers with the girls. He wants to use it as a channel for the drugs. Sell there" She gave a bitter laugh and Piper could see that her eyes were cold, annoyed and frustrated at the entire situation. Her heart dropped in her chest. She knew what the club meant to Alex and she sure as hell wouldn't want the place to be used as a place that people could pop into and get their next hit.

"What're you going to do?" she asked, her voice almost a whisper. Alex looked up at her, a sadness in her eyes that Piper hadn't seen there before.

"I really don't know". She shook her head, her blue hair falling around her face, and Piper found herself wrapping an arm around her shoulder in attempt to comfort the woman slightly. She was pretty sure that the alcohol she had consumed was still making itself known and she was leaning on Alex a little more than she would have had she actually been sober, but Alex either didn't seem to notice or didn't seem to care.

"You'll be okay, Alex. If you think that any of the girls are going to let the place go down, you're completely wrong. You told me before that you are a family there, and you really are. They'll help you in any way that they can and you'll be alright. You'll figure something, and I will do the best that I can to help you" Piper promised. Her words made Alex's lips quirk in appreciation but they both knew that no matter how close they were at Litchfield, it wouldn't help stop a king pin from turning the place into something it was never intended to be.

"You want a drink?" Piper asked, trying to sound as cheery as she could and distract from the sober mood that had fallen over them. Alcohol wouldn't fix anything – far from it – but it might help to cheer Alex up a little and ensure the entire night wasn't a complete bust. Alex nodded and Piper held the wine bottle out for her but Alex looked at her with a raised eyebrow.

"That's not gonna do it. Get the vodka" she said, a tiny smile playing at the corner of her mouth as she inclined her head towards the kitchen. Piper pointed a finger at her.

"Good thinking".

Getting the vodka proved to be a much harder task than she had anticipated. She didn't have a clue about where things were in the kitchen and after opening and closing many cupboards without finding the bottle, she finally called Alex over for direction. She could hear Alex's sigh as she heaved herself off the sofa but she simply rolled her eyes and told her it was _she_ who wanted the drink and _she_ could flaming well come and help find it. As it happened, Alex didn't prove to be much help, deciding to lean against the counter in the kitchen and watch with amusement as Pipers search continued.

"You know, it really will be okay. I may only be a waitress, but I have connections. You want me to kill him?" She turned and asked Alex with a smile "Because I totally could. I may do time and, you know, ruin my life, but I could probably do it. Maybe" Alex laughed quietly, more appreciative of the support Piper was trying to give than she could ever explain. The girl hadn't known her that long and yet she was willing to do whatever she could to help Alex. Yeah, she knew that she wouldn't actually _kill_ someone, but Alex felt a weight off her shoulders at the thought of someone being there for her, listening to her and letting her know that if she needed anything, they were there.

"But seriously, you're an amazing woman, Alex. You'll get through this. From what I've seen you're fucking tough, you know? You'll figure a way out of it. Aha! Result!" Alex knew that she was grinning from ear to ear without having to even see. She had been getting closer and closer to the bottle but Alex had decided not to say anything, finding the woman's frustration kinda of freaking adorable. Turning, bottle held up triumphantly in her hand, Piper looked entirely too proud of herself and it was something that Alex simply could not resist.

Pushing herself off of the counter, she took one step forward, closing the small gap between them. She didn't think and she didn't question if this was a terrible, _terrible_ mistake because before any kind of doubt or reason could enter her mind, her lips were on Pipers.

The force at which Alex had kissed her pushed Piper backwards slightly and she steadied herself against the kitchen counter with her free hand. For her, there was no movie moment where things slowed down, where she was able to think a million thoughts, her world becoming clear and a realisation that this was what she needed. _This _was what she had been searching for this whole time. She didn't suddenly feel like her and Alex had always been inevitable and she didn't know that they were forever. But then again, she didn't know that they weren't. Time stayed the same, it kept marching on and it didn't slow down and it didn't speed up. It simply passed and neither of them knew how much of it had been spent with Piper pushed up against the counter, revelling in the feel of the hands on her hips, occasionally travelling slightly up to the sensitive skin of the dip of her waist. She didn't know how long it had been before the hand that had come up to rest against Alex's cheek moved to her shoulders, pulling her closer so she could feel her more or how much time had passed before she heard herself sighing contentedly into her mouth.

She did, however, know that not enough had passed before Alex pulled away, her eyelids heavy and a lazy smile across her lips. The two remained close, their faces inches apart.

"This vodka really is the good shit" Piper said quietly, not entirely sure why her voice had dropped near to a whisper "You haven't even needed to drink it to become drunk". Alex gave a small laugh and then let a moment of silence stretch out between them as her eyes searched Pipers.

"I'm not drunk" Alex whispered, quirking an eyebrow. Piper allowed room for another pause before she took a deep breath, knocked her head to one side and held her free hand up, her index finger and thumb a centimetre apart.

"I am a little bit". Alex laughed loudly, her head dropping forward and a hand running up and down the blondes side. As the laughter trailed away, Piper saw a far more serious look come over Alex. She felt her hair being pushed away from her face and a finger trail over her cheek gently.

"Thank you" Alex said quietly and Piper shrugged casually.

"Oh, hey, don't mention it. We're all here if you need us. Nicky. Lorna. Sophia. All of them" Alex nodded slightly and then looked up to Piper.

"And you" Pipers eyes crinkled with her smile.

"And me" she confirmed, leaning in slowly to kiss Alex again. Alex moved forward, her lips parted, but just as they were about to meet, she turned her head slightly, moving instead to Pipers ear and whispering into it, her breathe catching her and making her shiver.

"How about that vodka now?" she asked, amusement lacing her voice whilst Piper let out a frustrated groan. The blonde shook her head and rolled her eyes. Reaching up, she hooked her fingers around Alex chin and guided her lips back towards her own. Meeting them, she draped her arms around the back of Alex's neck and pulled her closer, smiling into their kiss.

"Shut up" she mumbled against her.

And Alex was only too happy to comply.

-x-

_Big thanks to __**cmc49abc, MeganWray, Chand3li3r, AussieGal20, giggi91, PheonixTears87, Christi06, Sasha, requellu47, VillageVoice412, ohmcsexy**__and __**ToTheBarricades. **_

_You're all fantastic. _

_X_


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